The Phoenix Part I: Phoenix Rising
by Zaion Indulias
Summary: Part I in my Phoenix Trilogy. Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze, son of Minato and Kushina, has been raised in a secluded compound by his mother and Rin, a student of his father. Now the young man is testing to become a ninja of Konoha and to discover his legacy.
1. Chapter 1: Of Foxes and Men

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

The Phoenix Part I - Phoenix Rising

Chapter 1 - Of Foxes and Men

The Sandaime Hokage sat at his desk, still in shock over the events of the past several hours. Konoha was decimated by the Kyuubi no Kitsune, greatest of the nine tailed lords who had risen to the forefront of the demon pantheon and terrorized as they chose the human world. Minato Arashi Namikaze, last of the wind-using Namikaze clan and his successor, the Yondaime Hokage, was dead, awaiting a state funeral after he exchanged his life with the Shinigami in order to seal the Kyuubi no Kitsune within an infant, his own newborn son. And a ghost from his past now stood in front of his desk, wearing a nondescript hooded black cloak.

Under the hood, the Hokage could just make out the gold- and silver-tatooed features of a woman already old beyond her years when the Hokage had first met her as a young man, foolishly attacking what he thought was an enemy Iwa ninja.

"Hello Kabatsu-san. I must admit, I never thought I would see you again. It's been what, thirty years since I last saw you?"

Kabatsu Cora chuckled and removed her hood, revealing a woman in her early thirties, her fiery red hair sparkling in the lights of the Hokage's office, the ninja headband around her neck displaying a stylized eight point star. Sarutobi could not help but be struck by how little she had changed.

"Yes, it has been a long time Sarutobi-san. But what do you expect, when we have been keeping ourselves under the radar. Last I heard, you had retired, and your great weapon during the last war with Iwa, a Namikaze I believe it was, had taken up your role as Hokage. So what are you doing back behind that stuffy old desk?"

Sarutobi sighed. "Quit with the games Kabatsu. I don't know how but I'm sure you are aware of every detail of what has happened here, just as you were on that day thirty years ago. Yes, Minato Namikaze is dead, lost sealing away the Kyuubi no Kitsune. The last of the clan that your renegades had joined is dead. So what possible interest you have in Konoha any longer I do not know."

Sarutobi did not mention the child, who had been given his mother's name to hide his lineage.

Cora chuckled, grinning like a fox herself.

"Oh Sarutobi, you and I both know thats not true. I was afterall a Kagemusha of Nagareboshigakure. I can smell the descendant of the Gouzenkaze clan as clear as day. But do not worry, Sarutobi. The Four Clans gave up any claim to the descendants of the Namikaze long ago, when the Binding Contract was returned to us. The boy is safe, but there is still the remote possibility that there may come a day when he displays the powers of the Gouzenkaze. If that happens, we will have to insist that the powers be sealed away, or he be brought to us for proper training so that he does not hurt himself or others. The Kussetsukaze is not something to be taken lightly."

Sarutobi was speechless for a moment, but before he could continue the doors to his office were pushed open and in marched an angry Rin pushing Kushina Uzumaki in a wheelchair, her new son nestled asleep in her arms.

"Sarutobi! A squad of chuunin just attacked Kushina and her son, blaming him and the creature he carries for all thats happened. It is no longer safe here for them."

Rin shut up as she noticed the mysterious woman standing before Sarutobi, and the intense look she shot the young Uzumaki boy. Rin took up a defensive position.

"You better think twice before attacking the kid, whoever you are. Any threat to his well being will not be tolerated."

Cora lazily returned her gaze to Sarutobi. Sarutobi could see that Cora's normally blue eyes had become slightly reptilian and red. She spoke, he voice reverberating slightly, deeper than before.

**"Well, it seems I'm not as all knowing as you thought Sarutobi. Why did Minato seal the greatest of the Tailed-Ones into his own child? You know what? I don't want to know. I guess it's just the gaki's fate, being a descendant of the Gouzenkaze as he is, that he should carry within him a demon lord, even if it is just the Kyuubi whelp."**

"What the hell are you blabbering about Onna?!" Rin exclaimed, her kunai at the ready.

Cora turned a disdainful look on the kunoichi.

**"Quiet brat. I am far older and more powerful than you. And I mean none of you harm."**

Her focus centered on the child briefly.

**"Sarutobi, it seems that our purpose here has changed."**

She returned her focus to Sarutobi, her eyes a deeper red.

**"The gaki is descended from the Gouzenkaze and he now carries a demon within himself. If I had any doubt that the Kussetsukaze would awaken in this child before, its gone now. If he carries a demon, then its presence and influence guarantees that his legacy will awaken. Know this, Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage of Konoha. The child this woman holds in her arms is precious, in more ways than one, and has been placed in a position that very few can appreciate. When the time comes, as I am sure it will, that the Kussetsukaze awakens within him, members of the Four Clans will be waiting, and watching to see whether he uses his abilities for good or for evil."**

Kabatsu Cora backed up to the window, smiling now as her eyes returned to their normal blue.

"Sleep well, sweet kazeko. May the gentle winds of fate guide you well, and protect you from adversity."

With a flash of flame from her feet Cora was propelled out the window, doing a backflip as she traced a line of blood along her left forearm, grinning.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu!"

With a puff of smoke a red- and silver-scaled dragon about twelve feet in length with a horned crown and flaring wings appeared outside the Hokage's window with Cora sitting grinning on its back.

"See ya later old man."

Cora and the dragon disappeared swiftly into the night sky, heading for parts unknown.

"WHO THE HELL WAS THAT!?"

Sarutobi flinched and turned to face the angry kunoichi who had her kunai jammed into his desk.

"An old...friend, from the days before I was the Hokage. Rin, if you and Kushina do not feel that it is safe for the child here, then what do you propose we do?"

"It's simple really."

Kushina said softly, finally looking up from her newborn baby, exhaustion in her eyes. Sarutobi and Rin both turned to look at her.

"We'll stay at the Namikaze compound. Minato...he...he keyed me in to the security system before...before he.."

Kushina couldn't continue as she broke down crying, Rin swiftly moving to her side and holding her, whispering comfort to her.

Sarutobi pondered this for a moment.

"Well, I guess with the two of you to raise him and train him, it might work. He'll be a little cut off until his exams, but once he takes them and becomes a genin, no one in the village will be able to touch him without bringing down the entirety of my wrath."

Sarutobi thought for another moment before nodding, his mind made up.

"I've decided. As of this moment you, Rin, and you, Uzumaki Kushina are hereby on a longterm C-rank mission to train and protect Uzumaki Naruto, heir to the Namikaze, Uzumaki, and Gouzenkaze clans, as well as the Jinchurriki for the Kyuubi no Kitsune. You will have an ANBU squad, handpicked by me, assigned to bring you supplies on a weekly basis, as well as to provide additional protection beyond the wards already in place. You will be given training material and supplies for Naruto, as well as some techniques copied from the Forbidden Scroll. From what I know of the Gouzenkaze, Naruto will be more than capable of mastering these techniques by the time he is ready to test for genin."

Kushina looked up again.

"What do you mean, Gouzenkaze clan? What did that woman mean about the...the kussetsukaze, whatever the hell that is?"

Sarutobi took a deep breath and sighed.

"The woman you met is from Nagareboshigakure, a small Hidden Village far to the West, in a country in between the Countries of Wind and Earth. They have a...unique history, to say the least. And there will be plenty of time to explain the Kussetsukaze to you, but for now we must get Kushina and the boy to safety."

Sarutobi stood, shucking his robes and revealing himself to be wearing lightweight battle armor.

"Now, follow me quickly, and we'll get you to the Namikaze compound before anyone can organize their hatred and turn it towards the boy. Sparrow, Inu. Show yourselves."

Two ANBU, wearing a bird and a dog mask respectively, revealed themselves from the shadows

"You two guard our flanks. We'll use the tunnels beneath the city to exit unnoticed."

With that Sarutobi lead the way out of his office, the two ANBU taking up flanking positions around Rin, Kushina, and the Yondaime's legacy.

* * *

**Sixteen Years Later**

Sixteen year old Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze stood in front of the Academy, taking a deep breath to get over his nerves before entering. He had been excited that he would be allowed to test for genin with other prospective ninja, but he was nervous, as he had spent the past sixteen years living outside the city, in his father's clan's old compound. He rarely entered Konoha with his mother Kushina or his guardian Rin, much less alone, his mother and guardian having decided long ago that it was unsafe, and instead had taken him on trips to other villages to get him some outside interaction. But today, he was going to make them see. He was going to make them all see that he wasn't the bastard fox sealed within him.

He was dressed in black pants and black boots, with a deep red jacket over a white shirt. His hair was tied back in a ponytail and was streaked with some red and black highlights, completely at odds with his brilliant blue eyes.

Naruto grinned as a cute blonde girl raced past him, chasing a girl with bright pink hair yelling something about "Ino-pig." Naruto chuckled when a tall boy with brown spiky pinapple hair muttered "Troublesome" under his breath. Yep, screw nervousness. _This looks like its going to be interesting. _

Nearby Kushina Uzumaki, Rin, and Mitarashi Anko, a jounin who had been assigned to assist in Naruto's last year of training, watched smiling as the boy they had raised from childhood, through all the difficulties therein, took his first steps into the world of being a true ninja. Kushina smiled as a dark-haired Hyuuga girl stopped with her escort, her jaw dropped at the gorgeous blond walking in front of her. Anko snorted as the ballsy boy who had hit on her on more than one occasion winked at the Hyuuga before entering the academy, missing the fountain of blood from her nose propelling her onto the ground.

"Well, the gaki certainly has some talent with the ladies. I guess thats what we get for letting him roam during those visits to Eizou Town."

Anko was chuckling louder as she, Kushina, and Rin stood and shushined away.

Naruto stepped into the room he had been directed too, smiling widely as he recognized several figures inside. He gave Aburame Shino a curt nod, having met the insect-nin and his parents a year before at a party at the Hokage's tower, and shared a high five with Akamichi Chouji, who he had met at the same party. He had told both his secret, and had been pleased that they hadn't judged him on what he carried inside himself. And he had been pleased to encounter another person who shared his appetite.

"Yo Chouji, hows it been man?"

"MUNCH cant complain MUNCH glad you made it for the exams MUNCH MUNCH hey, want to go get some barbecue to celebrate after the exams are over? MUNCH"

Naruto chuckled as his friend munched away on his chips. Naruto could swear he had never seen the guy not eating.

"Absolutely Chouji. I'll need to stop by and see the old man first, but sure. Meet ya at Hikaru's at say...six?"

"MUNCH see ya then buddy MUNCH MUNCH"

Naruto grinned and walked up the steps past a perpetually bored looking teen with pineapple-spiky brown hair, the previously seen blond and pink haired girls fighting over a seat next to another bored looking teenager with perpetual emo eyes, and a rough-and-tumble looking boy with red markings on his face and a feisty pup on top of his head who Naruto realized could only be an Inuzuka.

Naruto passed several other rows of students before taking a seat at the back of the class.

As he mentally rehearsed the jutsus he was going to perform for the practical portion of the test the purple-haired hyuuga girl from before entered, her long hair swaying as she looked around the room. When she caught sight of him she blushed intensely, but otherwise managed to remain standing. Taking a deep breath, she strode up the stairs with determination, passing the Inuzuka who seemed confused by why she kept walking, and stopped by Naruto.

"H-hello. Mind if I sit here?"

Naruto blinked and smiled up at the girl.

"Not at all, gorgeous. Sit wherever you like."

The hyuuga blushed as she took the seat next to Naruto.

"I-I'm Hinata. Hyuuga Hinata"

Naruto smiled at her, taking in her eyes.

"Hello Hinata. I'm Naruto."

Naruto noticed that the teacher was late.

"So, tell me, are the instructors here always late, or is it just ours?"

Hinata chuckled.

"No, they arent usually late. Iruka-sensei is probably just making last minute confirmations on test matters. Don't worry. I'm sure he'll be here soon."

Naruto chuckled.

"I'm not worried, I'm just a little nervous about the exams. If you hadn't noticed, I havent exactly been to any classes. I was taught by my mom and my guardians since I was born."

"Oh? Why wouldn't you have been allowed to attend classes with the rest of us?"

Naruto was saved from having to answer that question when the door to the room slid open and a scarred chunin with brown spiky pineapple hair entered, followed by a second chunin with blue hair.

"Ok everybody, quiet down."

The two fighting girls ignored Iruka-sensei. Iruka performed a few quick hand seals and suddenly his head was enlarged.

"I SAID QUIET!!"

Both girls slammed down into their seats, suddenly meek and quiet.

"Thats better. Now, as I was trying to say, we have a new student with us, Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze."

As Iruka continued faces all around the class turned to look at Naruto, some with confusion, others with glimmers of understanding as they heard his last name.

"For reasons that I cannot disclose, Naruto here has been being trained by his mother, a Jounin of Konoha, as well as several other Jounin selected by the Hokage himself to train him. He is here to take the genin exam with you all, and should he pass, two of you may find yourself on his team."

Iruka shuffled a few papers. One emo-teme with duckbutt hair glared at Naruto, wondering why this new punk was important enough to rate special training by Jounin instead of attending classes.

"Now, the first part of the exam will be a written exam. This will be followed by an obstacle course, accuracy exam, taijutsu exam, and a ninjutsu exam. Those of you who pass will be given your instructions at the end of the day. Now, as Mizuki passes out the exams, I want you all to remember that if you don't know something, don't let yourself get overwhelmed by nerves. Just skip it and answer the next one."

As Mizuki began to pass out the exam Naruto chuckled. _A written exam? This is going to be a piece of cake._

Next to him, Hinata couldn't help but smile at her neighbors chuckle and eager grin as a thought passed through her mind.

_I wonder if he has a girlfriend._

* * *

AN: Hope you enjoy this. I've got insane levels of ideas running through my head, and have been working slowly on a few projects with friends, and am even a primary beta/co-author on a massive and well established zoids fic (insert selfless plug for Dragon-Raptor here) but this is the first solo project I've really gotten serious about. I've got an extremely complex world developed, and can't wait to hear what people think of it as the story progresses. So please R&R. Any questions will be answered.

Pairings: At present I have only a few vague pairings planned, and one definite. I may offer readers a chance influence the pairings, or even to influence the victories of certain matches once the story reaches the chunin exams.

Update 9/21/2008: I noticed a few errors in this chapter, so I went back and fixed them. They are minor so you don't need to reread the chapter if you've already read them. I merely corrected a few spelling errors, as well as an error in this original chapter. it's an artifact of me adjusting the back story slightly that got skipped over, so I corrected it so no one else will be confused. Apologies that it was even there in the first place.

Now, translations. Whenever I use somethign in japanese in the story that I feel people should know the meaning of I'll leave the translations at the end of the chapter. if I ever forget to, dont hesitate to ask for the meaning.

Kussetsukaze - _bending wind_

Gouzenkaze - _roaring wind_

Kabatsu - _fire strike_

Kuchiyose no Jutsu - _Summoning Technique_

Cora - no meaning. I gave her the name cuz it sounded good.


	2. Chapter 2: Trials and Tribulations Pt1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix".

Chapter 2 - Trials and Tribulations, Part 1

As Iruka and Mizuki moved throughout the room collecting the exams at the end of the test Naruto stretched. He was so used to sitting in a tree or spread out on the grass of the Namikaze compound while studying that spending three hours sitting in place in a chair had been torture for him. A deep rumbling chuckle in the back of his mind told him his partner in pranks was amused by his host's discomfort.

_Hey, you try sitting in one place for three hours after sixteen years of running around._

**_I have kit, or have you forgotten that I'm stuck inside you._**

Naruto chuckled, earning him a puzzled look from Hinata. He just winked at her.

_Of course not, baka-kitsune. But you at least get to move around a bit. I've been sitting literally in one place. On a very uncomfortable chair I might add._

**_Bah. Whatever kit. Besides, from what that pineapple haired teacher said, the rest of the exam is all practical. That should be right up your alley._**

Naruto suppressed a snicker as he wondered what his new classmates would think when they saw him during the rest of the exam.

"Um, Naruto-kun, why do you have that look on your face?"

Naruto blinked and looked at Hinata, confusion on his face.

"You looked like you were a cat playing with a mouse."

Naruto's face remained blank for a few moments before he chuckled.

"Oh. Haha. It's nothing. I was just contemplating which pra-er, technique I'm going to demonstrate for the ninjutsu portion of the practical, that's all."

Naruto chuckled a little more, scratching the back of his head with one hand.

Hinata just shook her head, blushing imperceptibly. This new boy Naruto was confusing her all up. She decided that she found him a pleasant enigma.

"Now, quiet down everyone. We've got all your exam papers, so Mizuki will take them to be graded while I lead you out to the obstacle course for the second part of the exam."

Most of the chattering around the room settled down as soon as Iruka began talking, but Naruto took stock of those whose attention was elsewhere. He noticed that the pink haired and blond haired kunoichi that had passed him on his way into the building were still glaring at one another, and he noticed that the duckbutt haired emo-teme they had been fighting over was glaring at him. Naruto decided he'd better keep his guard up around him. The Kyuubi agreed.

"Now, if you'll all gather your stuff and follow me, I'll show you to the obstacle course you will be competing on."

With that Iruka gathered a few papers and headed for the exit from the room. As Naruto pushed back his chair and stood up stretching, he watched out the corner of his eye and could see that the emo-teme flashed him a glare before he turned and walked out the room, a posse of kunoichi squeeing and following him out. When the dust cleared Naruto found that Hinata was the only girl left in the room.

"Hmm, well, I'm impressed."

"What?" Hinata asked, confused.

Naruto chuckled and faced her as he turned to head down the stairs and out of the room.

"With you. Unlike every other kunoichi in this class you seem to be more interested in the exam than some emo-teme with a duckbutt hairstyle."

Hinata blanched, turning white as Kiba, who had walked over to join them chuckled and patted Naruto on the shoulder.

"What's his deal anyway? He kept glaring at me through the entire exam."

Kiba chuckled as the three headed down the stairs, following Chouji out of the classroom.

"You mean Sasuke Uchiha? His older brother killed his entire clan, slew his parents, but left him alive so he could be tormented by the knowledge."

Kiba snorted loudly.

"But frankly, his tirades about gaining power to defeat his brother have grown tiresome. Any respectable student here just ignores him unless we don't have a choice. He doesn't socialize, and even with that huge mass of girls that follows him everywhere he hasn't shown the slightest interest in any female. I swear, if it weren't for the fact that he hasn't shown any interest in any guy either I'd almost think the emo-teme was gay. Instead, I just think he's an idiot."

The puppy on his head barked.

"Hehe, yeah Akamaru, I think your right. I bet his brother probably-"

"Kiba! How could you say something like that about a fellow student?"

Hinata interjected, her complexion recovered. Kiba blinked at the white eyes suddenly staring him down. Before anyone had a chance to continue Iruka stuck his head around a corner and yelled for the three to hurry up.

As the three hurried down the corridor Naruto turned to his new companion.

"So your name's Kiba huh? I think I met a relative of yours last year. Her name was Hana I think."

Kiba grinned back and Akamaru woofed happily from atop his head.

"Haha, yeah, she's my older sister. She mentioned meeting you as well. Something about you having good taste in women's underclothes I think she said."

THUD

Both boys stopped and looked behind them to see Hinata passed out on the floor of the hallway, blood dribbling from her nose.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Obstacle Course**

Naruto waited with the other prospective genin as each in turn ran the obstacle course. Some showings were impressive. As much as he hated to admit it the emo-teme had done quite a good job of it. Others, not so much. The pink haired girl from earlier slipped on one of the swinging ropes and landed in a puddle of water, and the blond got tangled in a rope net for a while before she managed to extricate herself and finish the course. When it was finally his turn he crouched at the entrance to the course like some sprinters he had watched compete in one of the cities in the Land of Water during a trip. He had spoken with a few and they had given him some pointers on starting off during races.

**_Just remember kid, don't show anything you don't want possible enemies to know about. We both know how dangerous this city can be for you, and I don't particularly feel like being returned to the Summon Realm in spirit chains kid._**

_Yeah yeah, don't get your panties in a twist. I'll stick to simple acrobatics, none of the fancy stuff Anko and mom taught me._

Kyuubi just chuckled in his head.

When Iruka called start Naruto launched forward with a burst of speed, bounding down the obstacle course. He quickly sprinted through it, dodging obstacles with a fluid ease and grace, scrambling past others with vulpine speed and grace, not that many of those watching would understand. When he reached the finish line he grinned brightly as Iruka announced he had made the fastest time so far. Again he noticed the emo-teme Sasuke glaring at him, and Naruto stuck his tongue out at him before leaping down from the finish platform

"Oh man Naruto that was wicked. Where'd you learn to move like that? It reminded me of a fox my sister showed me once while we were outside the city on a family trip."

Hinata, standing nearby, noticed Naruto's sudden nervousness and filed it away for future investigation. As she approached the two boys she saw Naruto pet Akamaru and saw the little pup bark happily. She smiled, remembering the first time she had met the little dog too.

Flashback

"Hey everybody, guess what!"

A fifteen year old Kiba burst into the classroom, drawing annoyed looks from a few of the inhabitants, including Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno, who were in the middle of one of their frequent heated debates over who would win Sasuke.

Kiba proudly held up his arms, revealing the inquisitive white puppy in them.

"Akamaru is finally old enough for me to take him with me. Isn't that awesome?"

Shikamaru Nara muttered. "Troublesome."

Chouji smiled as he munched on his customary twelve bags of chips.

Hinata stood up and walked over to pet the new puppy, who eagerly sniffed and licked at her hand. Hinata giggled.

"Your so lucky your family is so close to their animals Kiba. My father won't even let me keep a hamster. He feels that keeping animals as pets or companions is beneath us Hyuuga. Sometimes I wish I could just shut him up for once and leave."

Hinata eeped and turned white as she realized what she had just said.

Kiba chuckled.

"Well that's a first from you Hinata. Glad to see you are finally gaining some confidence in yourself."

Hinata's color returned as she smiled.

"Yeah, well, some stuff happened recently at home that made me finally realize I'm not worthless, not that any of my relatives can see otherwise. So I guess I'll just have to make myself the best ninja I can be."

Hinata snickered at the bickering girls as she returned to her seat.

End Flashback

"Hinata. Hey Hinata, you ok?"

Hinata blinked as she found herself face to face with Naruto.

"Whah!?"

Hinata stumbled backward as Naruto and Kiba bent over laughing, slapping each others' backs.

"Man Kiba, Hinata-chan must have been zoned out something bad."

Hinata blinked before getting an annoyed look on her face and stomping towards the two laughing boys.

"That wasn't funny."

Naruto and Kiba laughed as they ran away from the angry kunoichi chasing after them. Iruka just watched and shook his head. Mizuki however was watching the three with a thoughtful look on his face.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Target Practice Field**

An hour later all the students were lined up at the practice field as Iruka explained the rules of the third part of the exam.

"Ok, now listen up. The next part of the exam is the accuracy exam. You will each be given three kunai, three shurikens, and three senbon. You will attack the target, aiming for the three critical points. Your goal is to be as accurate as possible with your strikes, striking each point with a kunai, shuriken, and a senbon. With that said, Ino Yamanaka, you're up first."

Hinata, Naruto, and Kiba stood near the back of the line and watched as Ino stepped up to the line and paused for a second. Suddenly she shifted position, her hands moving rapidly. Looking at the target all watching could see that she had hit almost perfectly, only one senbon off slightly.

Ino smirked at Sakura. "Try to beat that forehead."

Ino walked out of the way as the next student stepped up and Mizuki reset the target.

As each student stepped up in turn to take their shot Kiba and Naruto chatted.

"So you mean to tell me you actually dared to paint the Hokage Monument? Man Kiba, you've got balls."

Kiba laughed.

"Well when you're raised by two women, you end up needing to do something to get outside attention. Even if it's the wrong sort."

Naruto laughed.

"You don't know the half of it. I may not have painted baka on the Sandaime's forehead, but I've certainly performed my share of pranks. Just ask my mom about it and she'll probably tell you about the time I replaced all the toilet paper in the Namikaze compound with her collection of ninjutsu scrolls."

Hinata just shook her head smiling. She had become good friends with Kiba over the past year, and she was pleased to see that this new guy was getting along so well with him.

_Especially since he's so damn cute._

Hinata blushed as Naruto stepped up to the line, taking hold of the proffered weapons. Then, without seeming to move, he launched the weapons at his target. When everyone finished blinking they realized he had hit every spot perfectly. Sasuke glared at him, as did Sakura. Hinata smiled at his continued good showing as Kiba stepped up for his turn, and noticed that Ino was now looking at Naruto with a look of confusion.

Naruto, catching her look, chuckled.

"What is it Ino-chan? Did you think the reason I haven't been in normal classes meant I was remedial or something?"

He chuckled again as Kiba joined him. Hinata missed what was said next as she focused on throwing her own weapons, but when she turned back Ino was watching stunned as Naruto and Kiba walked off laughing.

_Huh? I've never seen that particular look on Ino's face before. I wonder what they said to confuse her so._

Hinata chuckled to herself as she passed the stunned kunoichi on her way to follow Kiba and Naruto, who had begun following Iruka towards the practice ring for the fourth part of the exam.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Taijutsu Practice Field**

Once everyone was gathered in the practice field Iruka split everyone into two groups.

When the students wouldn't quit yapping to each other about how they had done on the previous two portions of the exam he performed a few quick handseals.

"EVERYONE QUIET DOWN AND LISTEN!"

Naruto and Kiba both rubbed at their ears as Iruka's jutsu was dispelled, returning his head and voice to normal.

"Now, as I was trying to say, the fourth part of the exam will involve a one on one taijutsu fight between each of you and Mizuki. The matches will be three minutes each. You may use any taijutsu style or techniques that you know. Kiba Inuzuka, your up first."

Kiba grinned at his companions.

"Well, wish me luck. Mizuki may not be the coolest instructor, but I've seen him practice spar with Iruka, and he knows his stuff."

Kiba turned back to the ring as he and Akamaru entered. Crouching, he awaited Iruka's command to begin.

When it came he lunged forward to assault Mizuki with his family's trademark style.

Naruto turned to Hinata as Kiba and Mizuki went at it.

"So, Kiba tells me that you have some of the best taijutsu of the entire class."

Hinata blushed and smiled faintly.

"Kiba really said that? Well, um, my family's personal style, Jūken, disables the opponent's tenketsu. For years, actually, I felt I was a failure, because I was apparently too nice. But, about a year ago something happened that changed my mind. See, the Hyuuga clan is split into two groups, the main family and the branch Family. My cousin Neji was born to the branch family, but he taught himself the powerful techniques normally taught only to the main family. My father, who never seemed to be proud of me, berated me for allowing a branch member to surpass me before taking Neji under his wing for special instruction. He decreed that I was no longer his heir and began training my younger sister in my place. I'm not sure why, but that jolted me out of my self-doubt. I took a look at my life, and at life outside the Hyuuga compound, and realized that my kindness is only a weakness if I let it interfere with my duties as a ninja, and I realized that I'm not worthless like my father said. So I decided that I would change myself and become the best I could be. A year later, well, I don't even care anymore if my father is proud of me or not. When I grow up I intend to denounce my clan name."

Naruto stared at Hinata, at the determination on her face. Somewhere in the back of his mind a voice spoke up.

**_Damn kit, this girl has fire. Not like those silly civilian girls at that concert last month. I'd keep an eye on her kit._**

_Whatever baka-kitsune._

But Naruto silently agreed with the fox. Hinata was something else. He smiled and held out his hand to her.

"Well Hinata, that's an admirable goal. I'll be cheering you on."

Naruto winked at her and was rewarded by Hinata blushing.

"Graw, get off me Mizuki!"

Naruto and Hinata both turned back to the ring to see one of their classmates pinned by Mizuki.

"Twelve seconds Ichigo, not very impressive at all. I hate to say it, but you'll probably need to spend another year at the academy."

Ichigo grumbled as he stood up and walked off muttering to himself.

"Ok, next up is Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke humphed and stepped into the ring, taking a basic fighting stance. When Iruka called start he remained in place, waiting for Mizuki to make the first move.

Mizuki stepped forward and struck, starting a back and forth match between him and Sasuke.

Naruto grinned, admitting to himself that the emo-teme had some skill.

Sasuke lasted the entire three minutes, only taking one or two good hits from Mizuki. As he walked out of the ring he smirked at Naruto with an arrogant grin as he was surrounded by a crowd of raving fangirls. Hinata was surprised to note that Ino wasn't among them. When she looked around she found her standing on the other side of the ring talking to Chouji.

_Huh? I'd have normally expected her to be fighting Sakura or fawning over Sasuke, so what's she doing talking to Chouji?_

"Naruto! Your up next."

Hinata blinked and turned to see her new friend step into the ring with Mizuki.

Grinning Naruto took a stance that had him balanced back, his hands held open and in a defensive posture.

"Begin."

End Chapter

**AN: So, here's chapter 2. I can't guarantee a daily update rate, but I will update as often as possible. The only time the release of an update will be intentionally delayed is if I'm just not satisfied with the version I've written, or if I've decide to write multiple chapters and complete them all first before uploading. At the start of this project I was unsure of who I was going to team Naruto up with, but as I've been writing I've been thinking about it, and I think I know who the team setups are going to be. Also, to scione, who suggested Anko as love interest for Naruto, that's a good suggestion, but Anko is actually one of the few characters I actually have a relationship planned for. **

**Next time on "Rising Phoenix", Mizuki cheats, Naruto loses some clothes, and someone loses a gallon of blood from their face.  
**


	3. Chapter 3: Trials and Tribulations Pt2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Bleach, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 3 - Trials and Tribulations, Part 2

"Begin."

Without waiting for Mizuki to strike first Naruto slid his stance forward, launching a one-two punch at Mizuki's head before ducking under a kick from him and rolling away. As Naruto twisted and launched at Mizuki again he noticed Sakura start haranguing Ino out of the corner of his eye, and next thing he knew Mizuki had shunshined behind him and pinned him. Unfortunately Iruka hadn't been watching, and Naruto realized that Mizuki had noticed this as well as he shifted his pin to an academy-taught hold before Iruka returned his attention to Naruto.

"Oh."

Iruka looked down at his timer.

"Fifteen seconds. Not very impressive. I expected more out of you Naruto."

Naruto grumbled as he stood up and walked towards Kiba and Hinata, dusting himself off.

"Hinata, your up next."

Hinata gave Naruto a sympathetic look as she walked past him towards the ring.

"Ouch man, that sucks. Mizuki totally cheated back there, but Iruka wasn't watching. Why didn't you say anything?"

Naruto looked up from dusting himself off to look Kiba in the eye.

After a second he spoke quietly.

"Kiba, there is something about me that most people in the village hate me for, but if anyone but I mention it to anyone not already aware of it, they will be exiled, at best. When I came to take this exam I was aware that there might be those who would attempt to hinder my exam."

Kiba went still, shocked that anyone would want to hinder his new friend from passing his exams.

"I've already dealt quietly with dispelling a genjutsu on my examination paper, as well as someone's covert use of a Suiton jutsu to make parts of the obstacle course slippery when I took it."

Kiba gasped, even more shocked that someone would do that.

"But, the only people here are students. Well, and Iruka and Mizuki."

Naruto looked to be deep in concentration as he lead Kiba away from the ring towards a bench alongside the building.

"I know, and I don't know if this is Mizuki acting alone or whether both of them are in on it. But either way, I'm dealing with it as it comes. And I'd appreciate if you not say anything to Hinata. She put up a good front, but I think she still has a few lingering issues, and I don't want her worrying about this problem and screwing the last part of her own exam because of it."

Kiba appraised his friend with a newfound respect.

"Man Naruto, and here I thought you were just giving up. Ok, I won't tell Hinata. But she's a great girl, and doesn't deserve to be lied to by her _friends._"

Kiba put emphasis on the word friends.

"So I want you to promise me that you will tell her yourself after the exam."

Naruto looked at Kiba as they sat down. After a moment he looked back towards the practice ring where Hinata was holding her own against Mizuki.

"Ok Kiba, you win. I'll tell her, but ONLY after we've officially passed the exams. I don't want her jeopardizing her exam for my sake."

Kiba nodded assent to this as Iruka called time and Hinata left the ring, flushed but energetic. Mizuki's left arm seemed to be dangling.

"Hey guys, did you see that?"

Hinata ran over to them.

Naruto grinned at the excited kunoichi.

"Yeah we did Hinata. You did great. I'm really impressed."

Kiba looked at Naruto for a sec, impressed at how quickly he could put the mask back up. He realized Hinata was looking at him and hastily added his two cents.

"Hell yeah Hinata, you did great. And is it just me or did you manage to shut down Mizuki's arm?"

Hinata chuckled.

"Yeah. I guess he felt he needed to take things easy on me since I'm a woman. Well I showed him not to underestimate us women."

Hinata struck a pose and Naruto and Kiba both fell off the bench laughing, Akamaru barking in annoyance as he fell off Kiba's head. Hinata looked at them blankly for a moment before falling over laughing herself. They were so busy laughing they almost missed Iruka calling everyone to return to the classroom for the final phase of the exam.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Classroom A**

Everyone filed back into the classroom chatting excitedly. Naruto kept his attention half on Kiba's explanation of a technique his sister was going to teach him that would let him and Akamaru share abilities with one another and half on the rest of his classmates, gauging their behavior. He saw the boy named Ichigo take a seat dejectedly at the front of the class next to a short black haired girl and a grumpy looking red-head. He saw Shikamaru take his customary seat next to Chouji, and Naruto smiled as he saw his friend was enjoying a bag of barbeque flavored chips that he had introduced Naruto to a few months ago. He saw several girls fighting over seats near Sasuke, and he saw Sasuke look at him and smirk. Naruto's eyes narrowed.

"Ok everyone settle down."

Naruto, Kiba, and Hinata took their seats at the back of the room.

"Now, for the final part of the exam. Each of you will enter the next room one at a time and perform a bunshin and a henge. You will be scored on each. Ichigo, you're first."

Naruto saw the orange haired Ichigo stand and walk muttering into the next room following Iruka and Mizuki.

"Hey Naruto."

Kiba nudged Naruto.

"Yeah?"

"Your teachers did teach you to perform a proper bunshin and henge right? I mean, did they even have time, what with all that special instruction they were giving you?"

Kiba ducked as Naruto tried to grab him and give him a noogie. Hinata almost tried to stop them but then shook her head, giving it up as a lost cause. As she turned her gaze to look around the room she saw that Ino was looking at Naruto again, a look of contemplation on her face.

"Hinata, I wish to speak with you for a moment, privately."

Hinata turned to find Shino standing next to her desk, his hands tucked in his coat as usual.

"Oh, sure Shino, no problem."

Hinata glanced back at where Naruto and Kiba were wrestling on the ground with Akamaru watching and barking at them encouragingly as she stood up.

When they had moved sufficiently far away Shino spoke again.

"Naruto has earned my respect Hinata, and I would not see him done a disservice. Over the course of this exam I have noticed covert attempts to disrupt his exam. I am sure that Naruto himself is aware of these attempts, but for some reason he has chosen not to speak up and say anything. I suspect I know the reason why. I would like to ask that you use your Byakugan when Naruto goes to do the final part of his exam and watch for anything untoward occurring."

Hinata blinked, as this was the most she had ever heard Shino say without being prompted to recite a passage during class. Then what he was saying sunk in.

"Wait, you think one of our instructors is trying to make Naruto fail his exam?"

Shino merely nodded his head.

"But why would anyone want to do that?"

Shino looked uneasy, something Hinata rarely saw him as.

"I am not at liberty to say, Hinata."

"Hmph."

Hinata crossed her arms.

"Fine, I'll trust you Shino, as you have never lied to me. Just make sure you are sitting near me when Naruto goes into the next room."

Shino nodded his assent.

"Shino, your up."

Both students turned to see Iruka poking his head through the door as Shikamaru slouched through muttering "troublesome."

Hinata shared a look with Shino before he turned and silently headed down the stairs towards the front of the class. Once he and Iruka had left the room Hinata returned to her seat, where Kiba and Naruto had finally collapsed laughing on the floor with Akamaru jumping from one to the other barking playfully.

Things continued in the same manner until Ino returned from her exam. When Iruka poked his head into the room he called Naruto's name. As the laughing blond stood and leapt down the stairs Hinata noticed that Ino seemed slightly off.

Just before Ino slapped Sakura and started yelling at her.

"Forehead!" "What the hell did you do that for Ino-pig?!"

It quickly devolved into a full on fight. Iruka saw this and sighed.

"Naruto, head down the hall to classroom B. Mizuki will oversee your exam. I need to break these two up."

Iruka walked over and tried to break the two fighting kunoichi up.

Hinata and Shino shared a look, and Kiba, seeing this, looked from one to the other and back again.

"Um, Hinata? What's with that look?"

Hinata ignored him as Shino came over. She was too busy focusing on the wall into classroom 2.

"Byakugan."

**Konoha Ninja Academy Classroom B**

Mizuki was shuffling some papers as Naruto entered the room.

"Hello Naruto."

"Hello Instructor."

Mizuki looked at the door pointedly.

"Where's Iruka? He was supposed to bring you."

Naruto chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head.

"Ino and that Haruno chick started brawling. He said you'd administer my exam."

Naruto failed to notice Mizuki's smile as he looked down and shuffled the papers once more.

"Ok then. Well Naruto, lets have you make a bunshin first."

Naruto stood straight up and brought his hands together, performing a series of quick hand seals.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Mizuki blinked as the room was filled wall to wall with grinning copies of Naruto.

"Hmm. Impressive. But…"

Half the Naruto's blinked slightly confused. The others were busy wrestling. A few even went poof when they got hit too hard.

"I asked you to perform a bunshin. While Kage Bunshin is technically a more advanced technique, you did not perform the requested technique."

Mizuki made a few marks on Naruto's sheet before looking back up. Naruto, recognizing that Mizuki was doing whatever he could to hinder his exam, and deciding that openly confronting him about it wouldn't be smart, had an idea.

**_Oh kit, I think that's a good punishment for the teme. Just be careful your mother and Rin don't find out or they'll skin you alive._**

"Now, perform a Henge jutsu Naruto. I want you to turn into a copy of me."

_Yeah right, you teme. Like I'd want to be anything like you._

Naruto and every clone in the room brought their hands together and performed a quick series of hand seals. When they finished a chorus of "Henge" filled the room along with a cloud of smoke.

The smoke cleared to reveal a room filled with naked women, whisps of smoke carefully concealing certain parts of their bodies. Some had blond hair, some had red hair, and some had black hair. And all winked and blew kisses sexily at Mizuki.

Mizuki's attempt to remain conscious lasted precisely 3.8 seconds before a gout of blood shot from his nose, knocking him backwards in his chair and causing him to hit his head on the blackboard.

_Serves the damn teme right._

By the time Iruka returned and found him regaining consciousness the mass of Naruto's had already left the room.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Classroom A**

Naruto reentered the classroom to find Iruka finally having settled the two girls down. Ino looked like she had a headache, and Hinata-

_Whoah. What's with that look on Hinata's face? And what's with those cold looks from Kiba and Shi-oh shit. Kiba must have told him. But why is Hinata's nose dripping blood?_

Naruto swiftly made his way up the stairs past Iruka who turned to head back to the exam room, calling for Sasuke to follow him.

Naruto, Kiba, and Shino all stood quietly, cold looks on their faces. After a few seconds, Hinata was the one to break the silence.

"Um, Naruto?"

Naruto looked down at the blushing kunoichi.

"Um, where exactly did you learn that technique you performed? That was more than just a simple illusion."

Naruto finally understood why she was blushing.

"Uh-well, you see…"

"Where you learned that technique is not relevant at the present moment Naruto."

Naruto turned his gaze to Shino as he interrupted.

"What matters is that at least one instructor, possibly both, has attempted to lower your exam scores on multiple occasions, and you have done nothing about it. If you would accept it, Kiba, Hinata, and myself will contact the Hokage and attest to this fact."

Naruto remained quiet for a moment, appraising Shino. Finally he spoke.

"No Shino, don't. As long as I pass the exam, which I am sure I will, there will be no need for that. You and I both knew that this was a possibility from the moment I decided to come today to take the exams. And you well know that I will likely have to deal with worse now that I will be in Konoha on a regular basis. I can't always go running to the old man when I have a problem. I'm assuming Hinata informed you of precisely what techniques I performed in there?"

Shino nodded and Kiba grinned ferally, confirming Naruto's suspicions.

"Well that was just the tip of the ice-berg. I am under orders to keep the majority of my skills secret for now. Only my teammates will learn any more than I have shown here, at least for the time being. And even then there are skills that I by necessity must keep secret even from them, whoever they may be. I will not reveal them unless I am absolutely certain I can trust my teammates not to freak out."

"Ano, Naruto. What do you mean freak out?"

All three boys turned to face Hinata.

"It's…it's nothing Hinata. It's not that I don't consider you as a friend already, but rather that given the way the majority of the people who know this secret think about me, that I do not impart it's knowledge lightly. Shino knows, as does Chouji Akamichi, but they have both proven to be trustworthy and non-judgmental people. Perhaps one day I'll be able to trust you with this knowledge as well."

Naruto grinned and looked at Kiba, who had Akamaru on top of his head again.

"And yes, Inuzuka, I'm sure I'll be able to trust you with it eventually too."

Kiba laughed and slapped Naruto on the back.

"No pressure Naruto. Just tell me one thing. Does my sister know?"

Naruto paused for a second.

"Yes. And not because I told her. She is old enough that she already knew."

Both Hinata and Kiba puzzled at what sort of secret about Naruto could be known by people of a certain age but not those younger.

Naruto suddenly smiled and perked up.

"Anyways, cheer up. We are almost done with our exams, and by this time next week we will all be genin of Konohagakure."

**_Little as that means._**

_Oh shut up baka-kitsune. It's a means to an end and you know it._

Naruto could swear he heard the fox grinning in the back of his mind.

**One Hour Later**

Both Iruka and Mizuki finally returned, flanking the Hokage. As she made her way back to her seat by Kiba and Naruto Iruka and Mizuki shuffled a few papers into a folder and then turned to face the class.

"You have all performed admirably, and are a real honor to our village. While some of you need another year or two before we can put you in harms way, your failure of the exam should in no way dishearten you. The rest of you will be returning here in the morning for your team assignments."

The Hokage took a puff on his pipe before continuing.

"Iruka, if you would please read the list of those who passed?"

Iruka chuckled and stepped forward with a scroll in his hands and began reading off the list of names.

"Abarai Renji, Passed. Shino Aburame, Passed. Akamichi Chouji, Passed…"

Hinata saw that Naruto and Kiba had their fingers crossed in anticipation. She was so distracted she almost missed when Iruka called her name. Before it fully sank in she was being hugged by Naruto and Kiba, who were congratulating her on passing.

"Inuzuka Kiba…"

"YATTA!!"

"Ahem. Would you please keep it down to a muted roar Kiba? I am trying to read of the list of students who passed."

Kiba sheepishly sank back into his seat as Iruka continued.

"Kuchiki Rukia, Passed. Kurosaki Ichigo, Passed."

Naruto smiled as the orange haired guy who'd gone down even faster than him during the taijutsu exam stood triumphantly on his desk. Before an eraser tossed by Iruka knocked him backwards to the floor, his two companions staring down at his twitching form.

"See guys, if he could pass, then I don't have a problem."

Hinata smiled and Kiba chuckled. Akamaru barked happily.

When "Uchiha Sasuke" was announced Naruto noticed that Sasuke was grinning triumphantly his direction.

When "Uzumaki Naruto" was announced Naruto noticed that Sasuke's grin turned into a frown. Naruto just grinned back at him for a moment before turning to shake Hinata's proffered hand.

"And finally, Yamanaka Ino, Passed."

Iruka rolled up the scroll and stepped back. The Hokage took a few puffs on his pipe before speaking.

"Congratulations to all you who passed. Tonight you get to celebrate with your family. I'm sure that they are all outside anxiously awaiting to hear if you passed. Tomorrow, I want all of you who passed to return here at 8am sharp tomorrow morning for your team assignments. Until then, enjoy your celebrating, for you are now genin of Konohagakure."

A few of the newly promoted genin cheered loudly as the Hokage left the room followed by a few dejected students who would need to spend another year at the academy and Iruka and Mizuki began to pass out hitai-ate.

"MUNCH Hey Naruto! Don't forget. Hikaru's at six. MUNCH"

Naruto saw Chouji was proudly wearing his new hitai-ate.

"Hehe, definitely Chouji."

Naruto waved at him before taking the proffered headband from Iruka as he stepped up to the final row.

Naruto grinned.

"Thanks Iruka-sensei. Even though you didn't do a damn thing to stop Mizuki from attempting to sabotage my exam. Makes me wonder if you were honestly oblivious or if you were in cahoots."

Hinata and Kiba both gasped at Naruto's blunt statement. Iruka looked taken aback for a moment before frowning.

"And what makes you think Mizuki was attempting to sabotage your exam Naruto?"

Kiba and Hinata jumped in before Naruto could speak, both yelling about the different things that Mizuki had done. It took Iruka a minute to quiet them both, during which time Naruto merely kept a watchful eye on Mizuki and a solid stare at Iruka.

"Now, Naruto, as I asked, what makes you think Mizuki was attempting to sabotage your exam Naruto?"

"It's simple Sensei. First, he was the one who handed me my exam during the first part of the exam, which I detected was under a genjutsu, which I dispelled."

Hinata and Kiba both looked shocked that Naruto had been able to dispel a genjutsu unnoticed.

"Second, during the obstacle course someone used some form of Suiton jutsu to make sections of the obstacle course extremely slippery for me during it."

"Third, during the taijutsu exam, when you looked away to deal with Ino and Sakura, Mizuki shunshined to get behind me and put me in a body hold. While I could probably have broken free, I did not expect him to cheat, nor did I wish to injure a fellow Konoha shinobi during a friendly match."

Iruka looked appalled at the thought that what Naruto said could be true.

"And finally, Ino was ignoring Sakura ever since the accuracy portion of the exam. Yet when she comes back from her ninjutsu practical she appeared to be in a daze, and attacked Sakura for no apparent reason, forcing you to try to break them up. Coincidentally this occurred just as I was called for my exam. When I performed Kage Bunshin no jutsu, a considerably more advanced technique than a simple bunshin, Mizuki marked me down as failing to perform Bunshin no jutsu. And I'm sure my Henge score has me marked as doing poorly, but I was so fed up with the bastard's attempts that I used a Kage-killer of a technique to knock him out so I could return to my friends."

Iruka balked when Naruto casually tossed about knowing Kage Bunshin, a technique he knew to be forbidden.

"So you're the reason I found Mizuki passed out with blood dripping from his face?"

"Yup. Guess the perverted bastard couldn't handle my technique."

Kiba chuckled and Hinata blushed.

"Naruto, these are serious accusations. If you aren't telling the truth you could be sent to prison."

"I'm telling the complete truth." Naruto said seriously. "Whether you decide to act upon what I've told you is up to you. Now, good-day Sensei. I need to hurry if I'm going to meet up with my mom."

Naruto nodded respectfully before dodging around Iruka and hopping out the window.

After pausing for a moment both Hinata and Kiba bowed as well, grabbing their hitai-ate as they ran past and leapt out the window to follow Naruto, Kiba barking wildly.

Iruka chuckled at their exuberance as he turned to head down the stairs, but the sight of Mizuki leaving the classroom drove what Naruto had just told him back into the front of his mind.

_Mizuki. I swear, if I find any evidence that indicates that what Naruto has told me is true, I'll flay you alive myself._

Iruka headed down the steps himself to go clean up the blood left in the exam room by Mizuki's nosebleed.

End Chapter

**AN: Ok, so, another marathon writing session has produced another chapter. Several parts of this were difficult to write, as the direction I originally tried to take them just wasn't feeling write so I kept scrapping them and starting from scratch. A few characters introduced in this chapter were not originally intended for the story, but it just sort of fit so I decided to run with it. Naruto has barely scratched the surface of the abilities he now has. Because I decided to adjust the graduation age from the academy in order to allow the story to work the way I want certain characters are a bit stronger than they were when they tested for genin in the manga. Notably are Ino, Hinata, and Sasuke. For anyone wondering, no, Naruto will not end up on a team with Sasuke. So you'll have to wait a while for your quality Sasuke bashing. But hopefully you readers will like what I have planned for the team assignments. **

**Next time on "Rising Phoenix," Chouji and Naruto engage in an eating contest, Anko enjoys her dango, and a foolish ninja nearly has his head removed.**


	4. Chapter 4: Family Greetings and Shopping

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 4 - Family Greetings and Shopping

**Outside Konoha Ninja Academy**

Naruto landed with a thud outside the Academy building, followed shortly by his new friends Kiba and Hinata. Hinata looked at him with a mixture of shock and admiration on her face. Kiba grinned like a madman as he slapped Naruto on the back.

"Man, I can't believe you just did that. I mean, the look on Iruka's face was totally worth not calling Mizuki on his bull crap."

"Kiba!"

Hinata was shocked that her friend would be pleased at Iruka's surprise and confusion.

_On second thought, maybe it's not so surprising after all._

"What? You know it's true. Iruka always seems to have a stick up his butt."

Kiba let out a yowl as Hinata smacked him in the back of the head.

"That's because _you_ are always pulling pranks, Kiba."

Naruto chuckled as Hinata smacked Kiba again and Kiba attempted to fend her off. He was about to speak when a shout rang out from behind him, from the direction of the entrance to the Academy.

"Naruto! There you are. Your mom and I have been looking everywhere for you."

Naruto face-palmed as Rin came up behind him, attacking with a big hug and a huge grin on her face.

"So I'm guessing from this Konoha headband you're holding that you passed, right?"

Naruto grinned and turned to give Rin a hug back before taking a step back towards his friends.

"Yup, with _mostly_ flying colors. I'll explain the 'mostly' at dinner."

Rin just grinned at Naruto for a moment before looking past him and taking notice of his now stunned companions. Hinata was blushing, because Rin was a gorgeous woman, and had been hugging her new crush quite close. Kiba, blood dripping from his nose, noticed that Rin's white-and-red body-suit was quite form-fitting.

When Naruto didn't say anything after a moment Rin grinned and spoke up again.

"So Naruto, aren't you going to introduce me to your new friends?"

Rin's grin widened as Naruto blushed, realizing his forgetfulness.

"Um, Auntie Rin, these are Inuzuka Kiba and Hyuuga Hinata. They've made me feel really welcome, so please, don't embarrass me in front of them."

Akamaru woofed from atop Kiba's head, and Hinata continued to blush.

Rin spoke again as she turned to lead the way back to the front of the Academy.

"Oh, don't worry Naruto. I'd never do that to you. That's Anko's job."

Naruto stopped dead in his tracks as Kiba and Hinata both followed Rin.

"An-Anko's here? With mom? To see me graduate?"

Rin looked back over her shoulder as she continued to walk, Hinata looking back and forth between her and Naruto.

"Oh yes Naruto. And she is very excited to see you wearing your new Konoha headband."

Rin shook her head as she faced forward again.

"I swear, if she wasn't already slated for a special project of the Hokage's she'd be requesting to be your Jounin instructor."

Naruto turned even whiter. As much as he respected the dark-haired kunoichi's skill as a ninja, the thought of spending all-day, everyday, with her frankly scared the crap out of him. Something just wasn't right with that woman.

Naruto was brought back to reality by Kiba's cry of "Hey, hurry up Naruto!" Shaking his head to clear it he realized his friends were rounding the corner and he took off at a sprint to catch up.

By the time he caught up with them they had already reached the milling group of grinning new genin and their proud parents and siblings. He chuckled as he saw Kiba tackled by a wild-looking woman with red markings on her face while a more refined-looking Inuzuka woman in an entirely white coat watched on smiling. Naruto easily recognized Hana Inuzuka, Kiba's sister. She caught sight of him and waved before being ambushed by a hug from her younger brother and a big lick from Akamaru. Before Naruto could notice anything else he was ambushed by an attack from a beautiful red-head in blue and red pants and a blouse.

"Ack! Mom! You're crushing me!"

Naruto gasped for breath as his mom released the hug, smiling down at him. His relief was short lived as he heard a voice behind him say "Hello gaki" before he was ambushed from behind by another hug. Anko the snake-jounin had struck.

"Grah. Get off me Anko. It's creepy when you hug me while wearing that."

Hinata blushed seeing Anko's outfit. Anko was dressed in a short skirt and a long trench coat, wearing practically nothing but a sheer fishnet body-suit underneath it. She silently prayed that her nose wouldn't start bleeding again. Anko finally released Naruto, chuckling along with his mom and aunt as he spun away from her, wiping at himself as if dusting himself off.

"So Naruto, let's see it."

Naruto looked up at his mom, only to be greeted by the sight of three grinning kunoichi, and one extremely blushing one who was trying NOT to look at Anko's torso region. Finally realizing what they meant he reached into his pocket and pulled out his hitai-ate, pulling it to his forehead and tying it behind his head, grinning proudly as he did so. As he did this Hinata noticed a number of the adults around them looking at Naruto out of the corner of their eye with disgusted looks, and caught several whispers, including comments like "Is that th-" and "Quiet. You know we can't talk about that." Hinata filed it away for future analysis and investigation as she turned her attention back to Naruto.

Naruto continued smiling as Rin and Anko tossed off comments about how cool he looked now that he was Konoha shinobi and his mom smiled proudly at him, trying not to cry as Naruto reminded her so much of his father at this moment. Hinata watched all the happiness and pride they had in Naruto and felt a little jealous, as she had no one to shower such praise upon her. After a few moments everyone quieted, waiting for Naruto to speak. Remembering his earlier forgetfulness he hurried to prevent another occurrence.

"Um, mom, Anko, this is Hyuuga Hinata, one of my new friends."

Anko sized the young kunoichi up like a snake sizing up prey, which unnerved Hinata slightly, but her nerves were allayed when Naruto's mother stepped forward and held out her hand. Hinata took it, shaking.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Hinata. I'm Kushina, Naruto's mother. Because of his isolation he's had few friends growing up, so I'm pleased to see he made a new friend this quickly. Particularly such an attractive young kunoichi."

Hinata blushed as she and Kushina ceased shaking.

"Anyways, Hinata, I notice that no one is here to great you. Are your parents away on missions?"

Hinata looked down for a moment before looking back up with confidence.

"No ma'am. My family considers me a failure because I am too nice, too weak for them. As such I did not expect any of them to be here."

Kushina looked puzzled that anyone could dislike this cheerful kunoichi.

"Well that won't do. That won't do at all. Well, here's a thought. Since we have a few hours to kill we were planning to take Naruto to buy some gear before we meet the Akamichi's for dinner. Why don't you join us? It'll be my treat. And this way I can get to know you better."

Kushina was not unobservant, and she had seen the way Hinata had been looking at her son. Before Hinata could reply Naruto spoke up.

"Shopping sounds good mom, but I promise Ojii-san I'd stop by and see him after graduation."

Anko snorted and Rin chuckled. Kushina shook her head as Hinata looked confused.

"I really wish you'd stop calling him that Naruto. It's disrespectful."

Hinata was now even more confused. Naruto just smirked and then turned to look over his shoulder.

"Hey Kiba, we're meeting Chouji and his dad for dinner at Hikaru's tonight at six for a celebratory dinner. You and your family are welcome to join us."

Kiba looked up from the wrestling match that was him and his mother.

"Well, my mom's got a patrol tonight, but I'll certainly be there."

Kiba looked questioningly at his sister for a moment, who merely nodded back smiling. Kiba grinned and looked back at Naruto.

"Guess it'll be me and Hana then. Hikaru's you said? Isn't that the restaurant Chouji's always talking about?"

Naruto laughed and Hinata nodded agreement with Kiba.

"Yes Kiba, it is. I think it's near the Hokage's tower, on the north side.

Kiba's grin grew wider as his mother growled and the wrestling began again.

"Well I'll oomph see you at ugh six then. HAHA, now you're the one who's pinned mom!"

Naruto and Hinata both chuckled as they turned back to face the three adult kunoichi.

"So, shall we get started?"

Naruto asked innocently enough, but the grin on his face belied the fact that he was looking forward to buying some custom gear.

**Konoha Shopping District**

As they moved from shop to shop picking out items Hinata noticed three things. First was that while all three of the women in Naruto's life teased him endlessly, they all seemed to genuinely care about his well-being. The second was wherever they went numerous villagers would smile at Naruto for a moment before recognition set in, and then they would just glare in his direction. Though Hinata noticed that no one about her age or younger seemed to have this sort of reaction. Third was that while she was sure he must be aware of it, Naruto appeared to simply be ignoring it and enjoying the shopping. The same could not be said for his guardians.

At one shop, a weapons shop, while Naruto was looking over numerous exotic and traditional shinobi weapons Hinata caught Anko giving the shopkeeper a quiet but stern talking to. She couldn't hear much, but she did catch Anko clearly saying "If I catch you selling either of these genin inferior products or overcharging them, I'll see that you are given an all expenses paid visit to the bottom level of hell." Hinata shuddered. Whatever this was about, she was sure it was related to the secret that Naruto mentioned, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out what.

Their next stop was another weapon shop, run by a retired shinobi. Hinata was pleased to note that when this shopkeeper recognized Naruto he didn't recoil, but rather grinned wider. A few seconds later she knew the reason.

"Naruto! Ah, I see you're now a Genin, if that hitai-ate you're wearing is any

indication. Guess that means my best customer is doing pretty well."

Hinata blinked as Naruto turned to face her.

"Hinata, I'd like you to meet Kanaye. He was a good friend of my parents before I was born, and he's been making kunai for the traps back home for us for years. Kanaye, this is Hinata, one of the new friends I made today."

"Oh is she now? Well, it's always a pleasure to meet a new friend of Naruto's. Lord knows he's needed some new friends."

Kanaye turned his attention to the three women.

"So I'm guessing you are here to pick up the special order you place last month?"

Naruto looked quizzically between Kanaye and his mother.

"Order? What's Kanaye talking about mom? The traps are fully stocked for the next three months."

Kushina smiled at her son.

"It's something special, a gift for you dear."

Kushina took an intricately carved wooden box from Kanaye and opened it, revealing a set of oddly-pronged kunai with inscriptions on both sides.

"I had these made in memory of your father. They are similar to the ones he would always use in battle."

Kushina began to tear up slightly as she spoke about her dead lover.

"I had Kanaye inscribe your name on one side, and both the Uzumaki and Namikaze clan names on the other. I-it's my hope that you will carry these into battle with you, and never forget where you came from. Y-your father would be so proud of you, to see you standing like this right now. UWA!"

Kushina broke down crying and dropped to her knees. Anko caught the wooden box and closed it before it could spill and Rin rushed to Kushina's side, comforting her. Naruto stood at a loss for a moment, resplendent in his new shinobi uniform. Earlier in their shopping his mom had sprung another surprise on him. A custom tailored jacket, red on one side like his current one, but with the Uzumaki symbol on a field of blue on the back of it. It also had a grey-green inner lining, making the jacket reversible to improve his camoflauge while on missions. They had also got him a pair of fingerless black gloves with metal plates on the back, also inscribed with the Uzumaki clan symbol, and some dark green pants and shirts, the pants already equipped with kunai holsters.

Hinata watched as Naruto knelt by his mother, hugging her before helping her to her feet. Kushina wiped her eyes briefly before seeming to regain composure.

"I-I'm sorry. It's just, Naruto reminds me so much of his father right now, and it just brought so many memories flooding back."

Naruto and Rin both put their hands on Kushina's arms.

"It's ok mom. I understand."

Kushina smiled and lightly patted his hand before pulling out her pouch and paying Kanaye for the custom kunai, as well as a set of exploding tags and, after thinking about it for a moment, an extra set of kunai. With how fast Naruto wore them out, she figured he couldn't have too many.

Meanwhile Naruto was showing Hinata around Kanaye's shop, both teenagers laughing and smiling as she showed you an assortment of rare and exotic weapons that Kanaye had both purchased and forged himself. He proudly showed Hinata a katana that Kanaye had on display as an example only, with a depiction of a shinobi and the Kyuubi no Kitsune locked in eternal battle.

"Kanaye made this after my father gave his life to defeat the Kyuubi no Kitsune to honor his sacrifice. He told me that when I make Jounin that this is going to be his present to me."

Hinata smiled at Naruto's exuberance as he spoke excitedly about the sword. She could tell he looked up to his father as a hero, as someone he wished to emulate. Hinata sighed silently to herself, wishing she had someone like that to look up to. Turning her head to look at Anko and Rin, both of who proudly wore hitai-ate on their foreheads Hinata wondered if she couldn't use one of these strong women for that role. She was snapped out of her reverie by Naruto dragging her excitedly over to another stand where he had just noticed that Kanaye had some new swords that he had gotten in from the Earth Country.

**Hokage's Office, Approximately Five Thirty**

Sarutobi sat smoking his pipe quietly as he read over the latest request from the village council. It seemed that they were requesting the only last Sharingan user in Konoha be assigned as Uchiha Sasuke's Jounin instructor. Sarutobi sighed as he set the paper down. Hatake Kakashi was a genius. There was no doubt about that. But the Jounin did have an annoying habit of always being late and reading perverted novels all the time. Though, he did have to admit, the perverted Jounin did have good taste. Sarutobi chuckled, having several of Kakashi's favorite orange-covered novels in his own private collection as well. Sighing he stamped the paper approved with his seal and moved it to the out pile. Just as he was reaching for the next paper on the stack there was a knock at the door and his secretary poked her head in.

"Yes Arisa?"

"Um, sir, you said to inform you when the Uzumaki's arrived."

Sarutobi chuckled.

"Well, go ahead and send them in then Arisa. And Arisa?"

"Yes sir?"

"Since I have no other meetings scheduled this evening, you may take the rest of the day off."

Arisa smiled and nodded before ducking back through his office doors, which were opened a few seconds later by the psychologically intimidating figure of Mitarashi Anko, flanked by Uzumaki Kushina and Rin. Following them were Naruto, wearing new clothes it would seem and…_is that a Hyuuga? Hmm, Hinata I believe her name is. I recognize her from the graduation records._

As Naruto approached his desk, followed more tentatively by Hinata, the Hokage saw a glint in Naruto's eyes and a smirk upon his face.

_Oh no._

_**Shall we give the old man a heart attack kit?**_

Naruto chuckled to himself.

_Heh, why not kitsune. Why not._

Naruto performed a few quick hand signs and disappeared in a puff of smoke, replaced with a buxom naked blond version of himself, covered only by a few carefully positioned wisps of smoke. Sarutobi was blown backwards by the force of the blood exiting his nostrils. Naruto's cheer of victory was short-lived however as he was smacked on the back of the head by three annoyed kunoichi. Naruto was too busy holding the back of his head in pain as he dropped the jutsu to notice Hinata was blushing like crazy and had blood leaking from one nostril.

"Owe! What was that for?"

Kushina crossed her arms, staring firmly at her son.

"That was for using that technique again. I thought I forbade you to use that outside of possible use during a mission?"

"But mom! It's so _EASY_ to prank the old man using it."

Kushina's look remained stern, but behind her Anko snorted, covering her face with her hand, and even Rin had a smile on her face as she shook her head ruefully.

"Naruto Naruto Naruto. What are we going to do with you?"

Naruto chuckled and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

Everyone turned to face the Hokage's desk again as Sarutobi came around with a groan as he pulled himself back upright. No one noticed Hinata hastily wiping blood off her upper lip.

End Chapter

**AN: Ok, so, first, sorry the preview from last chapter hasn't been fulfilled, but I've been really busy the past week, and chapter 4 has ended up being larger than I originally expected. Thus I've split it into two chapters. Chapter five is about 80 done, and will hopefully be up by the end of the day. As you can tell, Naruto is still a bit of a prankster. I just can't imagine writing the gaki without him being a prankster at heart. I had fun with this chapter, but the next one is even better (well, I think so at any rate). Just a few chapters to go before the teams are announced. Hope you all enjoy!**

**Next time on "Phoenix Rising," the eating contest finally begins, a ninja sticks his knows where it doesn't belong, and Naruto impresses Ibiki.**


	5. Chapter 5: Dinner and a Dance

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

**AN: Here it is, finally, after two days of writer's block. Chapter 5, in all it's glory.**

Chapter 5: Dinner and a "Dance"

**Konoha Market District**

Naruto and Hinata chatted animatedly as they led the way to Hikaru's, Kushina and Rin trailing behind, trying to keep Anko from being distracted by "sharp-n-shinies" at various booths as they walked past. They continued like this for a few minutes before finally reaching Hikaru's. Hinata, who had never actually been to the restaurant, let out a gasp at the sight of it.

Hikaru's is a large, elegant two-story restaurant. It is known for its very large menu of items, it's extremely efficient cooking staff, and for the fact that, with very few exceptions, you need a reservation a month in advance to eat there anytime after four in the afternoon. Of course, Naruto and the Akamichi clan were some of the restaurant's best customers, and there is a large table always kept open just in case they drop by.

"Hey Naruto! Finally you're here!"

Hinata blinked as Naruto laughed and ran ahead towards the entrance. Chouji was standing just outside the doorway, a distinct lack of food in his hands. Naruto and Chouji bear-hugged one another as the four kunoichi caught up to him.

"It's about time Naruto. My dad's already inside waiting for us. He has our usual table and he ordered the usual appetizer spread."

"Shikamaru and his father aren't with you this time Chouji-kun?" Kushina asked with a smile as she approached. Rin and Anko were behind her, laughing with Hinata. Apparently the three younger Kunoichi had been sharing a joke.

Chouji shook his head no. "No. Apparently Shika's mom wanted to celebrate his graduation at home."

"Well, we both know what he must think of that." Naruto replied.

Anko chuckled. "Well, that just means more food for us. Now let's get some sake and dango and have us a PARTY!!"

Anko led the way into the restaurant followed swiftly by Naruto and Chouji. Hinata was about to follow when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning she found that it belonged to Kushina.

"Why don't you and Rin go inside Hinata? I'll wait out here for Kiba and his sister. But, just to warn you, my son has the appetite of an Akamichi, so please don't be surprised or turned off by what you are about to witness. Chouji and Naruto routinely hold eating contests when they come here."

Kushina chuckled and removed her hand, moving to take a seat on a bench to await the Inuzuka's. Hinata mulled over Kushina's comments for a moment and then chuckled, just before Rin grabbed her arm and dragged her inside after her.

"Come on, if we don't hurry those black-holes of ninjas will eat everything." Rin said as she dragged Hinata behind her.

Once inside Hinata was struck by a sight that would have had the legendary Son-Goku drooling. A massive table was set with huge trays of every kind of appetizer you could possibly imagine, including a three tier tray filled with nothing but dango; six different kinds of dango. Hinata noted that Anko had made a bee-line straight for the dango while Naruto and Chouji were sitting near Chouji's father. All three were diving into the food with gusto. She honestly had to wonder where they were putting it all. Taking a seat near Naruto she flipped her hair over her shoulder before gingerly picking up a delicate-looking sweet pastry and taking a bite.

Hinata was surprised to find that while the outside of the pastry was sweet, the inside was actually comprised of savory barbecue pork filling. Looking back towards Naruto and Chouji she noticed that each of them had an entire tray of the pastries in front of them, and were digging in with wild abandon.

"Come on boys! MUNCH Dig in! We need to clear the appetizers before the main courses arrive!"

Akamichi Chouza showed just as much gusto as his son and his friend when it came to digging into the food. And surprisingly Hinata noted, so did Anko, at least when it came to the dango. And the sake…lots of sake…

Hinata blanched again as she realized that there were four large bottles of sake stacked in front of Anko, and one was already empty.

_How the hell did she manage that?_ Hinata wondered silently to herself.

Kiba chose that particular moment to burst into the restaurant, loudly announcing "I have arrived." This was swiftly followed by Kiba thudding into the ground as his sister Hana punched him in the head. "Quiet down runt." Kushina followed the duo in, smiling.

Everyone at the table chuckled as Kiba took a seat across from Naruto, licking his lips and rubbing his hands as he prepared to dig in.

"Ittedakimasu!!" Kiba exclaimed, Akamaru seconding this with a bark.

Hinata giggled as her friend and his companion dug into a tray of fried chicken.

For the next few minutes there was discussion amongst the five kunoichi, and a seeming race to consume as much food as possible between the men. Surprisingly to Hinata, Naruto appeared to be surpassing even Akamichi Chouza. Naruto was downing appetizer after appetizer with such speed that Kiba had ceased in his own eating to stare in awe. Anyone who could out eat an Akamichi was a spectacle to behold. But can he keep it up? (For those of you reading, imagine Son-Goku from Dragonball Z and you have a general idea of just how fast Naruto is eating.)

A shapely brunette woman wearing a fancy kimono and smoking a cigarette approached a few minutes later with a pen and a pad of paper held in her hands, clearly coming to take their order. When she reached their table Kushina stood up immediately, and to the surprise of no one at the table except Kiba and Hinata, embraced the woman in a hug.

"Hikaru!!"

The woman grunted under Kushina's assault, a sentiment shared by Naruto as he snorted. Oyama Hikaru, the only other person on the planet who regularly had to suffer from Kushina's hugs-of-steel. When Kushina finally let go Hikaru finally spoke.

"KUSHINA!! HOW MANY TIME HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT!? IT'S EMBARASSING!!"

Kushina looked sheepish under Hikaru's verbal barrage until she finally finished. After taking a deep breath Hikaru opened her eyes again and smiled.

"Now that that's been said," Hikaru began, "We can finally get down to business. I'm sure I already know your order Kushina."

Kushina chuckled as Hikaru continued.

"As well as those of the two Akamichi's. They haven't ordered anything different in the five years they've both been coming here."

She snorted when Chouza both looked up from their food with big grins on their face.

"And I'm guessing that you would like a tray of smoked salmon, six trays of barbecue beef, and the endless rice combo am I right?"

Naruto's answering grin told her all she needed to know. Kiba and Hinata looked at him in confusion. As Hikaru continued they leant in and asked him simultaneously. "What's an end less rice combo?"

Naruto grinned before replying quietly. "It's an all-you-can-eat supply of three different rice dishes. Bowls of sticky rice, fried rice, and a spicy-sweet rice. Perfect for someone like me, because for some reason I have a high metabolism, so I store a lot of energy with big meals and burn it off fast training. I swear, if she and my mom weren't old friends I bet Oba-chan there would ban me for li-itai!"

Naruto's comment was interrupted by Hikaru grabbing him by his ear and jolting his head.

"Don't call me Oba-chan!" She said before releasing him. Naruto rubbed at his ear muttering "itai" as Hikaru turned to Hinata.

"So miss, what'll it be?"

Hinata thought for a moment before asking, "Do you do sukiyaki?"

Hikaru grinned. "We certainly do. Next to our smoked salmon and barbecued beef it's one of our best sellers. And that's after we take the Akamichi's and Naruto out of the equation."

Everyone gathered at the table laughed at this. As Hikaru turned to ask Kiba for his order Hana let out a gasp and suddenly hopped out of her seat and ran towards the entrance. Everyone at the table ceased eating, even the Akamichis, and turned to see what could cause Hana to react like that. The sight that greeted them was of Hana wrapped in the arms of Mizuki and sharing a deep kiss with him. Kiba instantly began glowering and Hinata lost her smile. She noticed that Naruto had shown a brief loss of composure before he returned to his usual smiling self. Hinata wondered why Naruto seemed so used to keeping up such a mask, but she didn't wonder long as Hana lead Mizuki over to their table.

"Everyone, this is my boyfriend, Mizuki. I know most of you know him, but Uzumaki-san, Rin-san, Mizuki here is an instructor at the Academy, and he was one of the two who administered the Genin exam to your son Kushina."

Kushina and Rin both smiled and said hello politely as Mizuki took a seat besides Hana. As he smiled and looked around the table he was met with a glower from Kiba and smiles from (mostly) everyone else. He assumed Kiba's glower was simple brotherly protectiveness and waived it off as irrelevant. He had more important things to think about after all.

Their food was brought quickly, and everyone but Kushina, Rin, and Anko were shocked by the huge amount of food consumed by the two Akamichis and Naruto. Even Kiba, who Hana jokingly said had a never-ending stomach couldn't keep up. Anko was nearly manic over her food. Hinata was surprised that the slightly aggressive tokubetsu Jounin wasn't digging into rare meat or something. Instead, Anko had a huge platter of various types of dango in front of her, and she was digging into it with relish, literally biting at the hands of anyone who attempted to pilfer one of her precious dango. Hinata actually got a little jealous when Anko teased Naruto partway through the meal by eating a piece of dango suggestively and winking at him, but neither Naruto nor Anko seemed to notice.

By the time they had finished and were waiting for dessert almost everyone at the table was nice and full and nursing drinks of various sorts. When Hinata turned to ask Naruto a question she sweat dropped as she finally realized just how much he had eaten. Sitting next to him were about twenty empty bowls all stacked together, and the seven trays of food that had been served to him were all cleared of food. Her delay cost her the chance to ask Naruto her question as he promptly stood up and excused himself to go use the restroom.

Hinata turned her head to look across at Hana again when Mizuki stood and excused himself as well. As Mizuki headed towards the restroom Hinata and Kiba shared a look. After a few moments Kiba nodded at her and Hinata swiftly excused herself and headed for the women's restroom. Once inside she went swiftly to a stall and used her Byakugan. She fought the urge to bleed from the nose as she spied on the men's restroom to spy on Mizuki.

Meanwhile, in said men's restroom Naruto was just pulling up his pants and going to wash his hands. Mizuki and Naruto were talking, and Hinata did her best to read their lips.

"You know Naruto," Mizuki began, initiating the conversation, "I was quite impressed with your showing during the exam. While you didn't perform the requested technique, which did mean we had to mark you down, it was only a small number of points you lost as you had actually performed a much more advanced technique. We had given you extra points for performing such an advanced technique. But I'm curious. How did you learn such an advanced technique? Last time I checked the only copy of the scroll it's recorded on was locked in the Hokage's tower."

Hinata gasped, but kept her focus as Naruto responded.

"Actually Mizuki-sensei, there is a second copy of the scroll. The Hokage had it made when I was child so that my mother could teach me some of the techniques when I got older. He felt that, as the child of the Yondaime, that it was my right to learn those techniques."

Mizuki was glad Naruto couldn't see his face, as he had a hard time hiding his glee.

_A copy of the forbidden scroll outside the strict security of the Hokage's vaults? This is perfect!_

"So now a copy resides in the library of the Namikaze compound, on a pedestal as it deserves; though right now it's serving as decoration more than anything else. I know all the jutsus from it I can handle at the moment and it will be a while before I have the training to learn any others."

Naruto finished washing his hands and dried them off quickly.

"Anyways Mizuki, I'm going to head back to rejoin everybody. My dessert should be on the table by now, and I want to get to it before Chouji gets any ideas."

As Naruto left Mizuki was too busy changing his plans in his head to notice the smirk on Naruto's face. But a pale-eyed kunoichi didn't. She quickly hurried out of the restroom to follow Naruto back to the table quietly.

Half an hour later everyone was sated and leaving. Kushina and Akamichi Chouza had foot the bill for the meal, much to the delight of Kiba, Hana, and everyone else. Rin was apparently in a discussion with both Akamichis about diets to help improve strength and charka capacity, Naruto was patting his stomach contentedly and Akamaru was asleep on top of Kiba's head. As Anko finished off her last piece of dango she ambushed Naruto with a hug from behind, much to the dismay of Hinata because Anko's ample bosom was pressed tightly against Naruto's back.

"Congratulations gaki, you're finally a true shinobi."

Before Hinata could get her nerve up and peel the slightly drunk kunoichi off of Naruto Anko let go and stumbled backwards slightly.

"Yeah Naruto, we did it man!" Kiba high-fived Naruto as he said this, both newly minted Genin grinning like idiots. Behind Kiba Hana and Mizuki were sharing a long kiss.

"Well dear, I've got to go. I've got patrol duty tonight, and if I'm late Hayate will have my hide." Mizuki said, finally breaking the kiss. He waved goodnight to everyone before leaping onto a rooftop.

Most of the party waved goodbye back. The exceptions were (I think you can guess who by now) Naruto, Kiba, and Hinata, all of who shared a meaningful glance before Kiba's sister grabbed him by the arm and started to drag him off, claiming she wanted to get home and check on Kuromaru's new litter.

"Thank you for the meal." Hinata said formally, bowing quickly to Kushina. "I must get home before it gets any later. See you tomorrow Naruto."

The last part of this she addressed to the grinning blonde with a smile before turning and running off towards the Hyuuga compound. Turning, Naruto and Kushina found that Rin had just finished her conversation with the Akamichis and was walking back towards them, Chouza and his son laughing uproariously as they headed off towards the Akamichi compound and a good night's sleep.

As she came back up to Naruto, Kushina, and Anko, Rin noticed that Naruto had one of his infamous pranking smirks on his face, along with a seriousness in his eyes. Catching his cues, all three kunoichi headed off down the street at high speed trailed by Naruto, heading for the forest outside of Konoha and the well-guarded Namikaze Compound. Since Naruto hadn't told them what was up yet, they could tell it was both serious and that they at least had time to get to the security of the Compound before discussing it. As they disappeared around a bend a black-cloaked figure stepped out from a balcony on the second story of Hikaru's, the moonlight glinting off silver and gold lines on her cheeks. Hikaru stood next to the figure, her cigarette smoldering in the cool night air.

"Some kid isn't he Kabatsu-dono," Hikaru said, her arms crossed.

The cloaked figure of Kabatsu Cora smiled.

"That he is, Hikaru-san. That he is."

The wind rustled around her and a hawk's cry rang out in the night.

**Uzumaki-Namikaze Compound, Outside Konoha, Midnight**

A shadowy figure moved swiftly and quietly towards the wall surrounding the compound. As it approaches it performs a few hand seals and disrupts a genjutsu, revealing the wall to be even taller and covered with spikes. The figure quickly bounces up over the wall, carefully avoiding the spikes.

As the figure crests the wall it tosses several shuriken out over the courtyard of the compound, drawing the fire of several traps as he drops silently below them and swiftly crosses to the clearly marked library, countering launched kunai and shuriken. When the figure reached the library it swiftly and quietly vaulted through an open room into the quiet, dark empty building.

Sitting on a pedestal in the back of the room sat a large scroll. The figure grinned as it approached swiftly, eyes wary for traps. Finding none, the figure steps up to the pedestal, preparing carefully to remove the scroll and to be ready to run if need be. Just before the figure can place his hands on the scroll and its pedestal vanish in a puff of smoke.

"What the fuck!?"

The scroll pedestal was replaced by Naruto standing, glaring right into the figure's eyes.

"Nuh uh uh Mizuki. This scroll isn't for the likes of traitors like you."

Naruto's grin was feral as charka began to roll off him in waves, his killing intent literally forcing Mizuki back.

"Now, let's see what you can really do, bastard. KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!"

Naruto was suddenly replicated around the rim of the room a hundred fold, every single clone radiating killer intent. Mizuki blanched, but before he could move Naruto struck out at him with a one-two combo before dropping below Mizuki's counterattack to deliver an open-palm strike to his midsection, launching him back. Mizuki back flipped and regained a standing position quickly drawing his two fuma shuriken.

"Heh, how did you know I'd be coming?"

Naruto's grin deepened, revealing his prominent canines as his whisker marks deepened.

"Simple, teme. I already knew you tried to sabotage my Genin exam. When you started questioning after the Kage Bunshin I figured you were trying to find out about the scroll. You didn't realize my lie about having a copy until it was too late, as you were too eager to believe that I was a little brat with no perception whatsoever. But by now, the Hokage knows of your betrayal, and his ANBU are moving in on the compound as we speak. Of course, they won't make it in time to apprehend you if you don't submit immediately."

Mizuki began spinning both shuriken rapidly and then charged at Naruto, preparing to strike him down.

"DIE DEMON BRAT!!"

Naruto made no move to defend himself.

"Most of the villagers may hate and despise what I carry inside-"

Mizuki's shuriken struck the unmoving Genin in midsentence as Mizuki grinned. But his grin was cut short as Naruto vanished in a blast of smoke. In another corner of the room his voice continued speaking as another Naruto stepped out of the ring and approached, his hands in the pockets of his new jacket.

"-of me, but it is traitors like you who truly deserve their hatred. You betray this great city, and all it has given you. You are the real traitor, the real demon. And if you do not submit, I can not be held responsible for what will happen to you."

"YOU BRAT!! I'LL KILL YOU!! THANKS TO YOU ALL MY PLANS ARE RUINED!!"

Mizuki launched himself at Naruto again, having determined from the fact that he continued the previous Naruto's speech that he is likely the real Naruto. As Mizuki brought his spinning shuriken in to strike Naruto he grinned.

"DIE DEMON BRA-"

Mizuki's attack cry was cut off as Naruto's lightning quick movements dropped him under Mizuki's guard and brought him up between his arms, his blocks knocking Mizuki's arms away so hard he lost his grip on his shuriken before Naruto slammed his hands into Mizuki's throat and chest, cutting off his tirade and sending him flying back, this time to land on this back. The two errant shuriken slammed into a pair of clones who promptly vanished.

**Hokage's Office**

In the Hokage's office a small contingent watched the events unfold in Naruto's library. Sarutobi sat flanked by two ANBU, while another pair guarded Inuzuka Hana, brought in under suspicion due to her relationship with Mizuki, and Umino Iruka and the Hokage's interrogation specialist Morino Ibiki watched on. Hana's frank shock and disgust with Mizuki's actions told the Hokage all he needed, and a nod shared with Ibiki indicated that the younger man agreed. Hana was completely innocent in these matters.

As Mizuki regained his feet and drew a pair of kunai to strike at Naruto, Hana gasped. A shadow had appeared behind Mizuki, resolving immediately into a copy of Hana. When it had fully materialized the figure began speaking with Hana's voice.

"Mizuki, darling. Why are you doing this? Why are you jeopardizing your career? You and I both know he is merely the jailor, not the demon. So why do this? Why betray our beloved Konoha?"

Mizuki spun, shocked by Hana standing there.

"Ha-hana!? What are you doing here!? You were never supposed to find out about this!!"

"No, I suppose she wasn't."

Naruto's voice emerged from Hana's lips, shocking Mizuki into a moment of indecision. That was all it took for Naruto to strike with Mizuki's own Fuma Shuriken.

CLANG

"GASP"

Hana was nearly in tears.

Mizuki collapsed, very nearly beheaded by the incoming shuriken which had collided with his neck in a hollow between them. But they were cutting into his neck, and if he moved further he knew he would kill himself. The figure of Hana vanished, replaced by a not-smiling Naruto.

**Uzumaki-Namikaze Compound, Library**

Naruto approached the now prone Mizuki, senbon thrown by the ring of encroaching clones slamming into Mizuki's arms, forcing him to drop his kunai.

"Now Mizuki, you begin to understand. I am not the demon fox. I am it's jailor. My father sacrificed me having a normal life to protect the village. I willing learn to master this curse so that I might protect the village as he did."

_**SNORT Yeah, like having the charka of a demon lord at your disposal is really a curse.**_

Kyuubi of course got no response as Naruto continued.

"You miscalculated teme. You assumed that because of the Hokage's law about not revealing the existence of the Kyuubi to me, that I would not know about it. But you were wrong. For years now I have had an arrangement with the Kyuubi. And do you know what?"

Naruto leant down next to Mizuki's ear, whispering words that only he could hear.

"Sometimes, when the Kyuubi gets really bored, I let him loose, just for a moment, so he can have some fun. **Like now."**

Mizuki's eyes widened as Naruto brought his right hand up to Mizuki's face, pressing his fingers on five points around his forehead and face.

"**Raiton: Dengeki Haaku."**

Mizuki was knocked unconscious by the blast of electricity that was released through him. Naruto swiftly removed the shuriken from around his neck before the defeated chuunin could collapse and sever his own head. Naruto and the Kyuubi both knew that ANBU would want the traitor alive.

Naruto turned and walked out the library's now open door into the waiting arms of his mother and aunt, his clones remaining to keep watch on Mizuki until the ANBU came.

**Back in the Hokage's Office**

Hana cried on Iruka's shoulder, distraught both over Mizuki's wounds, and that he would turn traitor. Ibiki merely stared calmly at the crystal ball and the now unconscious Mizuki. Suddenly he smirked, and began laughing. Everyone in the room but the crying Hana looked at Ibiki with incredulity. When he finally finished laughing the Hokage asked one question.

"What is so funny Ibiki?"

Ibiki started laughing again and indicated for the Hokage to focus the image on Mizuki's collapsed form. When he did, all watching noticed something. Mizuki had been so frightened by Naruto that he pissed himself. The Hokage sighed as all four ANBU joined Ibiki in laughing, just as a squad of ANBU arrived in the image to bring back the traitor. The Hokage took a puff on his pipe. It appeared that Naruto was going to be quite a handful.

End Chapter

**AN: So, Chapter 5 decided to give me some writer's block for the dinner sequence. The sequence at the Uzumaki Compound was actually the first part written (back when this was supposed to be part of chapter 4), but the dinner scene just resisted me for a while. But finally I got it done to my satisfaction. I'm considering doing little contests to see if people can figure out where the inspiration for some characters came from and offering the winners cameo points. Cameo points will be tallied and can be redeemed to have a character inspired by you, my readers, cameoed in the story. Or they can be redeemed later to increase the final score of a vote. (hint hint the chunin exams will involve votes to see who wins certain matches) Anyways, here is your first chance to earn some points. There is a cameo reference hidden in this chapter. The first person to answer in a review with both the name of the character who is the inspiration and what they are from will earn 5 cameo points. If no one has figured it out by the time I post Chapter 6 I will include a hint.**

**Also, I have been trying to post an ASCII, but it keeps getting destroyed by the site. If anyone can assist me with solving this problem, they will earn numerous cameo points and my eternal gratitude.**

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this, and I'll get right to work on the next chapter.**

**Next time on "Rising Phoenix," Teams are assigned, Photos are taken, and a scrawny brat gets bopped on the head.**


	6. Chapter 6: Assignment Day Pt1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 6: Assignment Day Part 1

The sun rose the next morning over a bustling Konoha. Here and there merchants hurried, getting ready for the day's transactions. In bedrooms all over the city thirty newly promoted Genin woke, yawning, to a day of excitement. They were to report for their team assignments. In one such room, decorated in a multitude of pinks, a pink-haired kunoichi stood before her mirror, proudly declaring "Yes! Today, I'll be assigned to a team with Sasuke-kun! I just know it!" Inside her head a black-and-white version of her self exclaimed "For Sure!"

In another part of the city a black haired Genin wearing sunglasses and a heavy white coat was caring for several hives of insects quietly in a cooled shed in the "Hive" as it is known to those around it, the close-knit collection of buildings that make up the Aburame clan holdings. His thoughts were on caring for the insects, as there was plenty of time before team assignments.

In a spotlessly clean and formally elegant compound near the center of the older district of Konoha a purple-haired ninja pulled on a pale-purple and white jacket on over her under-tunic and fishnet shirt, smiling into her mirror as she readjusted the hitai-ate around her neck before she exited the room. _Please Kami let me be on Naruto's team._

In a brightly-lit flower shop a long blond-haired kunoichi yelled goodbye to her father before running out the door. Her hair flowed in the wind behind her as she ran towards the Academy. _I still can't believe that new guy complimented my skills. Sasuke never even notices._

In a two-story building close to the Konoha hospital an orange-haired boy was dragged out of bed by an already dressed black-haired kunoichi and an annoyed red-head with a hitai-ate wrapped around his right arm. "Come on Ichigo. We're going to be late if we let your lazy butt sleep in." Both the kunoichi and the red-head dodged out of the way as the still-sleeping orange-head was attacked by an older man in a doctor's coat, starting a tussle. The two looked at each other for a moment before escaping from the room before they could get dragged into their friend's daily wrestling match with his father.

At a tako-yaki stand near the Academy, a spiky-black haired ninja and his bulky companion ate, one quietly the other not so, both preparing for the day. "Troublesome."

In a park near the Academy an unruly black haired teen in a heavy fur-lined coat was running around, chasing and being chased by an off-white puppy who was energetically barking. To an observer it looked like a simple game of tag, but for the two involved it was a useful tool to improve their awareness of each other's abilities.

In the now-largely empty Uchiha neighborhood a grumpy emo duck-butt-haired ninja stomped out of a house in his usual blue shirt with the Uchiha clan marking on the back. With his hands in his pockets he fixed his emo-hair in a mirror quickly before heading off towards the Academy.

Outside of Konoha the Uzumaki-Namikaze Compound was in an uproar as two very-damp kunoichi chased after a laughing blond with Kunai.

"Naruto! How many times do I have to beat it into you that the bucket of water over the door is NOT FUNNY!?" Rin roared as Naruto dodged a swipe from her kunai.

Laughing, Naruto shouted back over his shoulder. "But it's a classic. No charka manipulation or anything to warn even the most suspicious of ninja. I bet I could even get the old man with i-"

Whatever Naruto was going to say was interrupted as Kushina's kunai sliced through his throat. With a puff of smoke the Kage Bunshin disappeared and Kushina turned to find Rin looking at her in shock.

"Y-you were going for a kill strike?"

Kushina put her hand on her hip.

"It's Naruto. Did you really think he wasn't using a Kage Bunshin to perform the prank? He's probably halfway to Konoha by now, and without his stuffy mom and aunt to keep an eye on him."

On the roof above them a second Kage Bunshin snickered and then dismissed itself. In the middle of the path to Konoha Naruto snickered as well as he received the Kage Bunshin's memories.

_**Trust your mom to know when you use a Kage Bunshin, kit.**_

_Well she WAS married to the guy who pulled a prank on both of us._

The Kyuubi was quiet for a moment.

_**Wait…KIT!!**_

Naruto started laughing uncontrollably as he kept on his way to Konoha and his team assignment. He had new clothes, he'd managed to prank his mom and aunt, and he managed to get a poke in at the Kyuubi. Today was looking up.

**Outside Konoha Ninja Academy**

Naruto arrived to find his new friends Kiba and Hinata chatting outsidewhen he landed next to them with a WHMPH.

"Well guys, I pranked my mom this morning, so I'm set for the day." Naruto was grinning like an idiot, his hitai-ate proudly displayed on his upper arm and a cool pair of shades sitting on his forehead.

"Hey Naruto," Kiba said with a grin, "Glad you made it."

"Yeah," Hinata seconded, smiling and blushing slightly, "It's nearly time for us to receive our team, assignments. We better get inside."

Akamaru barked happily and leapt off Kiba's headed, leading the three laughing Genin inside. Nearby, Uchiha Sasuke stepped out from behind a tree, grinning.

_No way in hell am I being placed on a team with that…that dobe._

Still grinning the Uchiha headed inside.

**Konoha Ninja Academy Classroom A**

The three chattering ninja entered the classroom to find over twenty of their classmates already there, Naruto waved hello to Chouji as they walked up the steps past him, heading for empty seats in the back row.

Naruto took a seat next to the blond girl from the other day while Hinata sat next to him and Kiba sat in the final seat next to the stairs.

_Hmm, I think her name was Ino. I wonder why she isn't fighting that pink haired chick for a seat next to…oh, he just came in. No wonder she wasn't fighting with Sakura. But why isn't she going to sit next to him n-_

Naruto's musings were interrupted by Kiba.

"Hey Naruto, what's up buddy?"

Naruto blinked. "Dwah?" He said. "Oh, sorry, was lost in thought for a moment."

Hinata noticed Naruto glance towards Ino for a moment as he said this and felt a twinge of jealousy.

_Why do the guys always go for Ino?_ Hinata thought to herself._ What does she have that I don't?_

Hinata was still unaware that her choice of clothing prevented said guys from noticing the stunning figure she was developing; unlike the form fitting dark-purple clothing Ino was prone to wearing.

"Well, I asked you why you're wearing your forehead protector on your arm. Weren't you wearing it on your forehead yesterday?" Kiba continued, drawing Hinata back to reality.

"Haha, well, it interfered with wearing my sunglasses, so I decided that my arm would be an acceptable place for it, at least for now. What about you Hinata? Why are you wearing yours around your neck?"

Hinata, showing a hint of the timidity she still fought at times, poked her index fingers together while looking down for a moment before looking back up and replying.

"Well, simple. When I use my family's kekkei genkai it causes pressure in some of the blood flow in my face and forehead, and when I tested using it last night after I got home, the pressure from my hitai-ate was causing it to be a bit painful. So I decided to just wear it around my neck."

"Um, Hinata?" Naruto began. "Could it maybe just be that you had it tied on too tightly?"

Hinata blinked and then blushed.

"Um, I hadn't thought of that…"

Kiba and Naruto both laughed as Hinata looked down sheepishly.

_Duh._

On Naruto's other side Ino kept sneaking glances at him, blushing each time.

A few minutes later the trio looked up from their discussion at the sound of a commotion coming from the doorway.

Abarai Renji and Kuchiki Rukia were dragging a bruised Ichigo in behind them, followed by Iruka. Iruka was shaking his head as he carried a sheet of paper with the team assignments.

"Um, Iruka-sensei? Where's Mizuki-sensei?" Sakura asked when there was no sign of Mizuki after a few minutes. Iruka's eyes darkened.

SIGH "Students, it is my shame to inform you that your trusted teacher Mizuki was arrested by ANBU last night after breaking into a family compound and attempting to steal a copy of a forbidden scroll."

Most of the class let out gasps of shock at this news, looks of horror or dismay on their faces.

"Furthermore, if it weren't for the quick thinking and skills of one of your classmates Mizuki would have gotten away with the scroll, with no one knowing who did it."

The entire class looked shocked. One of their own had fought and taken down a Chunin? Unbelievable. There were a few exceptions. Ichigo snorted, wondering who was stupid enough to take on Mizuki. Sasuke frowned and narrowed his eyes, looking around the room trying to figure out who it was, and Naruto's two friends both turned to look at him, various mixes of shock, fear, dismay, and admiration on their faces.. Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his head. This exchange did not go unnoticed by Ino.

_Those three don't seem surprised by the news. Could it have been one of them? And why are they both looking at Narut-OMG! Could it really have been him?_

When Naruto didn't stand up or make a comment Iruka coughed and looked pointedly at him before continuing.

"Now, on to business."

Iruka was interrupted by Sakura raising her hand.

"Yes Sakura? What is it?"

"Um, sensei? If you don't mind, could you tell us who it was who fought Mizuki?" Sakura asked. She saw Sasuke perk up at her question, and Inner Sakura came forward.

_Yes! I got his attention. This is GREAT!_

Iruka put his hand to his forehead and sighed.

"The student who fought Mizuki was Uzumaki Naruto."

The entire class let out shouts of surprise. Whispers of "Is that the new guy?" and "How the hell did he manage that?" were scattered throughout the room. A few people took extra special attention. As he looked around the room Naruto noticed that Shino Aburame was regarding him with a calculating look before giving him a nod. Shino already knew about his "partner", but still, a nod of respect from Shino was a nod of respect from Shino. He saw Uchiha Sasuke glaring at him with a cold fire, and noticed that Ino next to him had her mouth open in shock.

As he glared, Sasuke was thinking to himself, wondering how this dobe could possibly have beat Mizuki.

_I saw how poorly he did against Mizuki during the taijutsu exam. It has to be a lie. Someone else beat Mizuki and then gave Naruto the credit when ANBU arrived to boost his reputation. Yeah, that was it._

Sasuke's glare deepend.

"Now, as I was trying to say before."

Iruka waited until everyone had quieted down and then began the speech he had tried to start earlier.

"Beginning today you are all real ninjas. But you are still merely rookie "genin." The hard part has just started."

Everyone in the room became attentive, hanging onto Iruka's every word.

"Now… you will soon be assigned duties by the village. So today we will be creating the 3 man teams… And each team will have a "Jounin" sensei. You will follow that sensei's instructions as you complete the assigned duties. We tried to balance team strengths, so that no team will be too strong or too weak."

This last comment was met with several cries of "WHAT?!" from around the room. Several of the new genin were thinking to themselves rather than shouting out.

_3 man teams? That's just more people to get in my way…_ Sasuke thought to himself.

_I hope I'm with Sasuke. I hope I'm with Sasuke. I hope I'm with Sasuke._ Sakura and Inner Sakura were chanting.

_I hope I'm with Naruto. I hope I'm with Naruto. I hope I'm with Naruto_. Both Hinata and Ino were chanting in their minds in the same rhythm, but neither would ever know.

_Please don't put me with that whiny fan-girl of a Haruno._ Several males in the room were all thinking. Sensing a disturbance in the universe all those thinking this suddenly shared a glance, before looking away. No self-respecting ninja wanted a whiny bitch on their team after all, but none of them were brave enough to say it to their faces.

"I will now assign the teams."

Everyone became attentive again as Iruka began to read out the teams.

"Team 1…" "Team 7 is Haruno Sakura, Inuzuka Kiba, and Uchiha Sasuke."

At this last announcement Sasuke snorted, Sakura stood up cheering, and Kiba face-faulted onto his desk.

"Man Kiba, I'm sorry. Looks like you got stuck with the Uchiha. Tough break man." Naruto said as he patted Kiba on the back.

Clearing his throat to regain attention after the interruptions Iruka continued.

"Team 7's Jounin sensei will be Hatake Kakashi. Team 8 is Yamanaka Ino, Hyuuga Hinata, and Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto's eardrums were shattered by twin shouts of "YATTA!" that came from both sides of him. The sources of said shouts instantly turned and started glaring at one another. Now it was Kiba's turn to commiserate with Naruto.

"Man, I'm sorry. But looks like you just ended up on a team with two kunoichi who both have their eyes on you." Kiba said laughing as he patted Naruto on the shoulder. It was Naruto's turn to face-fault.

"Team 8's Jounin sensei will be Yuhi Kurenai. Since Team 9 is currently in use we will skip it. Team 10 is Aburame Shino, Nara Shikamaru, and Akamichi Chouji. Your Jounin sensei will be Sarutobi Asuma. And finally, Team 11 is Abarai Renji, Kuchiki Rukia, and Kurosaki Ichigo. Your Jounin sensei will be Gekko Hayate."

Iruka folded his paper up and cleared his throat again.

"Now, your Jounin senseis will meet you here in the afternoon, so go ahead and take a break until then."

Iruka smiled and then left the classroom. Discussion instantly broke out. Some people went to talk to their new teammates, others marched out of the room in annoyance. "Troublesome" Shikamaru muttered as he stood and headed outside to watch the clouds. Chouji followed while munching on a bag of chips, and Shino soon followed sedately after picking up his bag. Naruto saw Uchiha Sasuke standing and glaring at him, but he was distracted when Kiba put his hand on his shoulder.

"Hey man, I'm going to go take Akamaru outside; why don't you and Hinata come join me for lunch in a little bit." Kiba said, grinning.

"Alright man, we'll meet you out there in a bit." Naruto replied.

Kiba left with a barking Akamaru by hopping out the window. Naruto stood and turned to address Ino, who was still smiling from being placed on the same team as Naruto (and wondering why she had ever been interested in Sasuke in the first place).

"Well Ino, I guess this makes us teammates from now on. Frankly, I'm glad it's you and Hinata I'm teamed with and not that whiny Haruno. She's still fawning after that Uchiha teme. I mean, seriously. So his entire clan is gone? So what? I'm the heir to two clans and the only living member besides me is my mom, and you don't see me going emo all over the place." Naruto said with a smile.

Ino simply smiled back, her synapses too overloaded that this cute new boy was talking to her and treating her as an annoyance to respond. Behind Naruto, Hinata felt another pang of jealousy. Thinking, she grabbed Naruto's arm.

"Come on Naruto, Ino. Let's go meet up with Kiba. We can eat lunch and get to know each other better outside." She said quickly. She really didn't want to have to share Naruto with another girl on team, but she resigned herself to the fact that that was the way things were.

Ino stood as Naruto turned to follow Ino. Of course, he didn't get far, seeing that as soon as he turned around he came face to face with a frowning Uchiha Sasuke.

"What do you want, Uchiha?" Naruto asked, his grin still in place.

Sasuke replied with two words. "Fight me."

End Chapter

**AN: And there you have it, Chapter 6. The shortest chapter yet, for which I do apologize, but I felt it made the perfect cliffie, and as I'm afraid the next section might give me writer's block, I wanted to get this chapter up today rather than it being delayed another day or two. Needless to say, i'll be working hard on the next chapter, so please Read and Review. And no, I won't tell anyone if Naruto accepts the challenge or not. You'll just have to wait til next time, on "Phoenix Rising."**


	7. Chapter 7: Assignment Day Pt2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 7: Assignment Day Part 2

Naruto and Sasuke shared a long look while several members of the Sasuke fan club cheered him on. Behind Naruto, Ino and Hinata were both crossing their fingers. Ino's focus was on glaring at Sasuke for his behavior, while Sakura was staring at Ino in confusion.

"Come on Sasuke!" Sakura shouted out loud. But Inner Sakura had different thoughts. _"Cha! Why is Ino-pig glaring at Sasuke like that? She is after him just like I am. Does she think playing hard to get is going to win? That's it, she must be showing interest in the new guy just to make Sasuke jealous!"_

Inner Sakura was always quite delusional.

Finally Naruto blinked and replied. "I do not see any point in fighting you, Uchiha Sasuke. We are both Genin of the Leaf. It is our duty to train, and keep ourselves free from extraneous injuries so that we can perform our duties for our village, not fight amongst ourselves like children."

Sasuke snorted. "Hmph. I knew it had to be a lie, that you fought Mizuki. You're too much of a coward to have fought him, too weak. Someone else must have fought him and given you the credit to cover up your weakness. You're pathetic."

Sasuke turned on his heel and marched out of the classroom, followed by Sakura and several other members of his fan club. Naruto, Ino, and Hinata all watched silently until Sasuke was out of sight. Once he was finally gone and the sound of his entourage had died off Naruto stretched before turning to face the two girls.

"So, shall we grab some lunch then ladies?" Naruto asked, smiling.

His smile turned to confusion as both girls grumpily grabbed his arms and dragged him down the stairs and out of the classroom. Naruto was too surprised to do anything.

Several minutes later he was sitting under a tree with both Hinata and Ino looking at him. After several long moments Naruto sighed and began to speak.

"Ok, ok. I'll tell you what happened last night. Well, Hinata, you remember when I went to use the restroom at Hikaru's?"

Hinata nodded silently, not wanting to admit that she had been 'peeping' on him. Ino felt a pang of jealousy that Hinata had spent time with Naruto the day before.

_Though, I guess it's my fault for not noticing him at first and instead remaining focused on Sasuke. sigh_

"Well, when Mizuki came in and started discussing my exam results with me, he was inordinately interested in where I was taught Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. So I decided to lay a trap for him, and told him I'd learned it from a copy of a forbidden scroll normally kept locked in the Hokage's office. I figured that Iruka would have reported what I told him to the Hokage, so Mizuki would probably have been under surveillance. If the ANBU didn't move in and take him in for questioning, he would come looking for the scroll."

Hinata and Ino both leant in towards him.

"And…?" they both intoned in the same manner.

Naruto gulped. "Um, and when he tried to take the scroll I ambushed him and fought him until he gave me an opening to take him down. I very nearly had to take his head off to beat him."

Hinata and Ino both let out gasps at this, just as Kiba landed beside them in a crouch.

"What are the three of you so doom and gloom about?" He asked, looking from at each of them in turn. Naruto was the one to answer.

"I was just telling them about last night, Kiba." Naruto replied resignedly, no trace of his mask present. Kiba was silent for a moment.

"So, you really did take him down?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah…and…" Naruto trailed off.

"What Naruto? What's wrong?" Hinata asked. She may have only known him a short time, but she was beginning to tell when something was up. She noticed that Ino had reached out and taken one of Naruto's hands in hers, but she pushed any jealousy down. This wasn't about her, this was about Naruto. Only he mattered right now.

When Naruto looked back up there was a deep sadness in his eyes.

"There are…things I can't tell you about. Not yet. Not here. It's too painful to think about sometimes, and too dangerous to talk about here." Naruto managed to choke out.

_**For what it's worth kit, I am sorry that things happened the way they did. But there is something about this world that affects us. Hashirama Senju did better than he knew when he tamed us nearly a century ago.**_

Naruto was sucked inside his mindscape, finding him self standing before the now familiar bars of the Kyuubi's prison.

_What do you mean Kyuubi_?

Naruto was looking down at the ground, lost in thought. Ino and Hinata just held his hands and waited for him to be ready to talk.

_**Something about this world drew us to it several hundred years ago. But that same something corrupts us, driving our sentience from us and turning us into mindless beasts. Being sealed within you is the one thing keeping me from Its 'Call'.**_

_What do you mean? You tried to smash me the first time I visited you in mind._

Kyuubi huffed and shifted behind the cage.

_**I had been awoken by a whiny brat demanding power. You would have done the same in my place. Besides, living with two females, you should have learned by then never to interrupt a woman's beauty sleep.**_

Naruto looked up with a shocked look on his face. Hinata, Ino, and Kiba could all see that Naruto's eyes were focused on something beyond them, but when they looked behind themselves the grass was empty.

_YOU'RE A WOMAN!?_ Naruto cried out in his mind. Kyuubi snorted.

_**Four years you've been speaking to me, and you only now figure that out. You really would be brainless if it weren't for your teachers, now wouldn't you kit? Now, you better get back to your teammates. Looks like they are about to call a teacher to tell them you've passed out.**_

_Huh?_

Naruto turned to see what the Kyuubi was looking at. His eyes met a vision of his friends waving hands in front of his face and he began to hear them calling his name as he was sucked back to wakefulness.

"Whoah. Um, sorry about that guys." Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"What happened Naruto?" Ino asked, real concern in her voice. As Naruto turned to look at her she finally noticed the thin markings on his face.

_So exotic looking…_ she thought to herself.

"Um, can we just say it has to do with what I can't talk about yet and give you guys a raincheck?" Naruto laughed nervously.

"Hey Kiba, what are you doing over with the dobe? We need to plan."

Sakura's far-too-chipper voice interrupted them before anyone could respond to Naruto's request. Kiba cursed before standing.

"Damn it. Well guys, guess I have to go talk with my team. Man, this is such a drag."

As Kiba started to walk away Naruto called after him.

"Hey Kiba, if you aren't busy, why don't we meet at that ramen place you pointed out to me yesterday for an early dinner tonight? I'm sure my mom will understand."

Kiba chuckled as he looked back over his shoulder.

"Sure thing man," he shouted back, "but I ain't paying for ya. I've seen how much you can eat."

Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"Um, Naruto? What did Kiba mean by that?"

Naruto blushed and Hinata saved him having to explain.

"Um, Ino, well, Naruto has a really high metabolism, so he tends to eat…well…exorbitant amounts of food. Um, don't be surprised, because since we are teammate's we'll likely be sharing meals together on a regular basis."

Ino blinked, not one hundred percent understanding. Hinata just giggled and assured her that "you'll see."

**Konoha Ninja Academy Classroom A, Early Afternoon**

Ino, Naruto, and Hinata returned to the classroom an hour later, having eaten the bento they had all brought from home. Hinata had seen Naruto's appetite the day before and surprised her teammate's by bringing enough food for nearly ten people. Ino had to admit that, as much as she viewed Hinata as a possible rival for Naruto's affections, she would definitely make a good friend. She realized that she really didn't know much at all about her new teammate, despite having been in the academy with her for eight years, and that made Ino regret her obsession with the Uchiha.

When they entered they saw that Iruka was sitting at his desk reading a book, and Kiba was near the windows looking grumpy as he spoke with his new teammates. Or rather, spoke with Sakura while Sasuke sat there grumpily. Kiba was too busy dealing with Sakura to notice them. Chouji was munching away on a bag of chips, as usual, Shino appeared to be reading a biology text, and Shikamaru was napping. Naruto was almost tempted to use Raiton: Dengeki Haaku to give him a serious case of static cling, but decided the Nara didn't deserve it.

_Now if it was that Uchiha-teme taking a nap on the other hand…_ Naruto chuckled, drawing funny looks from several nearby students as he followed his teammates towards the back of the room and the only empty seats. Plopping down in their seats Naruto leant back, balancing his chair on two legs with a foot hooked under the desk and put his hands behind his head, closing his eyes to take a brief rest.

A few minutes later the first group of the new instructors entered. Opening his eyes and looking down at the entrance to the room Naruto saw a bearded ninja smoking a cigarette enter the room followed by a brunette ninja with short hair and wearing a hat, and a shapely kunoichi with long black hair and dark red eyes. Naruto grinned and chuckled deeply, drawing looks from Hinata and Ino. He put a finger to his mouth indicating for them to be quiet and then began performing a series of hand seals. Speaking quietly he caused a Kage Bunshin to appear lying on the floor behind him.

"Ok, you know what to do. Operation 'Get Asuma in Hot Water' is a go." Naruto spoke quietly. His bunshin replied with "Ryoukai" before shunshining away. Ino and Hinata both looked at Naruto with questioning looks. He merely grinned and indicated for them to watch the front of the room where Iruka was standing.

"Team 11," he said, indicating the trio lounging at the front of the class, Ichigo apparently sleeping. "This is your Jounin instructor, Gekko Hayate." The trio in the back of the room noted that Hayate appeared to be sickly as he coughed repeatedly as he led his new Genin team out of the classroom.

"Team 10," Iruka continued, indicating the row where Chouji, Shikamaru, and Shino all sat. "This is your Jounin instructor, Sarutobi Asuma. He's the son of the Hokage, so you better behave yourselves."

Shikamaru muttered "troublesome" as he stood, but before Asuma could lead his students out of the classroom a scantily clad Anko burst through the door, wrapping Asuma in her arms and drawing a dirty look from Kurenai.

"Asuma, baby. Why didn't you call after last night? Was it no fun for you? Because I certainly had a good time, big boy." Anko emphasized this last part by grabbing Asuma's crotch.

Asuma sputtered, utterly confused for a good several seconds, long enough to get Kurenai glaring at him, before he finally noticed Naruto cracking up in the back of the room. Putting two and two together he struck out with a punch, causing "Anko" to vanish in a puff of smoke, causing Naruto to laugh even harder.

"NARUTO!!"

Naruto lost his balance in his chair and fell over backwards to the floor, still laughing as Asuma grumpily lead his team out of the classroom muttering about "pranking blonds and encouraging loud-mouth kunoichi."

Naruto finally got control of his laughter just in time to hear Iruka tell them that the woman was their sensei, Yuhi Kurenai. Composing himself he stood and followed his teammate's down the steps to meet with their new sensei. Naruto gave a sheepish grin when she glared at him, having garnered from Asuma's accusation that he was the source of the prank. Then something that had been bugging her finally clicked.

_This kid just used Kage Bunshin!_ Kurenai didn't let the surprise show on her face as she escorted her new genin from the classroom and lead them outside to a grassy knoll.

Sitting down cross legged on the grass she watched as her three genin joined her. She watched as Ino dusted her ass off before she sat down gingerly, watched as Hinata sat down in one elegant fluid motion, and watched as Naruto cheekily did a handstand before rolling into a sitting position between his two teammates, grinning.

Kurenai cleared her throat and began speaking. "Now, you already know my name, but I'd like us all to get to know one another better, so I'll begin." Kurenai felt that it was best to get the introductions done in a friendly manner while still on familiar territory. She had their exam results, but she needed to get a feel for their personalities as well. "I am Yuhi Kurenai, and I am a genjutsu mistress. I like vodka, salted octopus, and reading. I dislike perverts and cake. My dream is to one day develop an unbreakable genjutsu." Kurenai smiled at her new students, impressed that all three, even the prankster Naruto, were all paying close attention.

"Now, how bout you go next." Kurenai said, pointing to Ino. According to her dossier the girl was a typical young kunoichi, obsessed more with appearance than abilities, apparently one of numerous girls in her class obsessed with the last loyal Uchiha. Kurenai steeled herself for a possibly annoying speech.

"I'm Yamanaka Ino, and I guess I'm not really all that great as a ninja unless you count throwing weapons." Kurenai was shocked by her candor. The psych profile certainly didn't indicate anything like this would happen. "I like flowers, boys, and when my father helps teach me the clan techniques. I dislike…well lets just say I've had to reevaluate my likes and dislikes recently, so I can't really give a good answer." Kurenai noticed that Hinata was giving Ino a curious look. "My dream is to one day become a powerful kunoichi, master my clan's techniques, and maybe marry a strong ninja."

Neither Kurenai nor Hinata missed the sideways glance Ino gave to Naruto as she said this last part.

_Ah, I see. She seems to have taken a liking for her new teammate. Certainly a better choice if she is going to be obsessed with a boy right now. That Uchiha seems like a real head case. I've never met anyone more focused on revenge, not even Mitarashi Anko._

Kurenai's train of thought was broken as she was reminded of Naruto's earlier prank.

_This kid has balls of steel to pull that sort of prank. Hopefully I can get him to turn his pranking resources to more productive endeavors._

Kurenai's train of thought was again broken as Naruto spoke up.

"I'm Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, and I am the last living member of the Namikaze clan, son of the Yondaime Hokage, and heir to the nearly extinct Uzumaki clan. I like smoked salmon, barbecue beef, taijutsu, ramen, and dango. I dislike arrogance and those who hate others for no reason. My goal…"

Naruto paused for a moment before continuing.

"My goal is to one day become Hokage, reestablish my clan, and make the people of Konoha recognize my existence."

Kurenai smiled.

_Good, so Naruto appears to not hold the villagers any ill will for the mistrust and mistreatment they've heaped on him whenever he entered town. In fact, he seem determined to become the protector of them despite the way they have treated him. He truly is his father's son._

Naruto smiled and as some of his hair got loose from the band keeping it tied in a ponytail and got blown up in the breeze Kurenai had a moment of déjà vu, remembering a time she had seen the Yondaime Hokage shortly before his sacrifice to stop the Kyuubi.

"That is a very admirable goal Naruto."

Naruto smiled, and both Hinata and Ino blushed lightly as they looked at him.

_**So Kit I see you aren't going to tell them the rest of the story about yourself yet.**_

_Later Kyuubi. Once I'm sure I can trust them, I'll invite them all to the Compound for training and then I'll tell them everything._

Naruto was broken out of his conversation with the Kyuubi by Hinata beginning her introduction.

"My name is Hinata. I like people who are cheerful, and kind. I dislike mean people. My goal is to one day be a strong kunoichi and stand on my own two feet."

Hinata's deliberate omission of the Hyuuga name was not lost on Kurenai, who had been one of Hinata's escorts to and from the Academy while she was a Chunin.

"That is also an admirable goal Hinata." Kurenai said when Hinata had finished.

"Now, we have an appointment in a few minutes to get your photos taken for your ninja IDs. After that we'll visit the Hokage so you can turn them in. After that I'll explain what we'll be doing tomorrow."

With that Kurenai stood up, followed quickly by her students. She noticed that Ino again dusted herself off, Hinata regained a standing position fluidly, and Naruto did a back roll into a hand-stand and then pushed off into the air and flipped to land on his feet.

_That boy seems to revel in his agility. Could he know…?_

Kurenai lead her new genin team off to get their photos taken, smiling all the way.

**Hokage's Office, mid-afternoon**

The pictures had gone uneventful, with the exception of Naruto taking a funny pose at first and Kurenai forcing him to retake it. The three genin now sat in the Hokage's office while their teacher stood behind them. The Hokage was examining their ninja IDs.

"Hmmm…Approved."

All three genin let out a sigh of relief.

"I'm sorry I had to ask you to take them to get their ID photos taken, but due to us delaying the exams in order to allow Naruto to participate its compressed what should have taken an entire week into 2 days." Sarutobi said, taking a puff on his pipe. Both Hinata and Ino looked at Naruto in surprise. The latter looked sheepish and scratched the back of his head with one hand.

"It was no trouble Lord Hokage. I was able to prevent Naruto from ruining his ninja ID photo, so it was worth the extra time I had to put in." Kurenai replied.

"Good, good. Now, I know you have training planned for tomorrow, so bring your team back the next day and I'll give them their first assignment."

Naruto grinned widely at this news and exclaimed "YATTA!", and both Hinata and Ino smiled at his energy.

"Now, the rest of the day is yours to do with as you wish, but I want you to meet me at training ground twenty at nine tomorrow morning. Don't be late, and don't eat any breakfast." Kurenai said, addressing her students.

"Why shouldn't we eat breakfast?" Hinata asked, beating Ino to the punch.

"Because I don't want you throwing up on my during our first training session together." Kurenai replied.

The Hokage was about to speak to dismiss the team when his next comment was cut-off by the door to his office slamming open, followed by a kid leaping into the room yelling "Old man fight me!" and promptly tripping over his own scarf and slamming face first into the ground. Sarutobi muttered "Not again", while everyone else in the office looked at the kid in confusion.

"Damn it!! Who set a trap?!" The kid yelled as he pushed himself up, holding his forehead with one hand.

"Are you all right? And there isn't a trap anywhere!!"

That was a lanky ninja in black clothes and black sunglasses who had arrived right behind the kid.

"Who's the kid..?" Naruto asked, his question directed to the Hokage.

"I know!! You did something!!" the kid yelled, getting up in Naruto's face. Naruto promptly grabbed him by the front of his jacket and lifted him into the air.

"Hey, Naruto!! Let go of him!! That's the third Hokage-sama's grandson!!" The lanky man yelled again.

Naruto paused, looking at the lanky ninja for a moment before turning to look at the kid.

"Go ahead and punch me!!" the kid yelled at Naruto.

_Now that he knows who I am, he can't do it… Pft… He's just the same as my tutor and everyone else… _The kid thought to himself.

"You think I give a damn, moron?!" Naruto yelled, dropping the kid and punching him on top of the head. His new teammates and teacher looked at him in shock.

"What!?" the lanky ninja exclaimed, but Naruto ignored him as he towered over the kid and spoke.

"I don't care if you were Kami her self, if you don't show others proper respect you don't deserve it yourself. You barge in here uninvited, challenge the most powerful ninja in the village to a fight with you, barely an academy student, and then trip over yourself. And do you apologize? No! You keep acting like your all that, claiming that there was a trap or that someone else tripped you when the simple truth is you tripped over yourself." Naruto ranted.

"Enough of this demon! This is Konohamaru you are addressing! You will address him with the respect due the person who is going to be the next Hokage." The lanky ninja interrupted.

Naruto cocked his head and stared at the man.

"Really? And who the fuck are you? Allowing this punk kid to disturb the Hokage when he is busy?" Naruto shot off.

The lanky ninja pushed his glasses back up his nose cockily before speaking.

"I am Ebisu, special elite tutor to those who would be Hokage. And this young man you have just manhandled is my prized pupil, Konohamaru. He will be Hokage someday if he follows my shortcuts, so mind your manners." Ebisu said, more sedately this time.

"Cha, like I'm going to mind my manners to an arrogant child and an arrogant tutor who preaches bull crap like shortcuts. The only way to become Hokage is hard work." Naruto shot back. Turning to face Konohamaru again he added one last comment. "Remember that squirt. Hard work is the way to go. Short cuts will only get you killed."

Naruto turned and bowed to his sensei as Ebisu began sputtering behind him.

"Sensei, ladies, I'm sorry for what you are about to see, but this Ebisu is pissing me off, and I need to go cool off. I'll be at Ichiraku's at six if you still care to join me for dinner."

Naruto brought his hands together and performed a series of hand seals.

"Seiteki no Jutsu" Naruto vanished in a puff of smoke and was instantly replaced by a tall buxom red-head with whisker markings on her face and carefully placed wisps of smoke just barely covering certain parts of 'her' body.

The Hokage and Ebisu were instantly knocked out by jets of blood shooting from their noses. Kurenai had to blink to be sure she wasn't seeing things. Hinata managed to remain conscious, having recognized Naruto's hand seals and correctly interpreted his intentions, but she still had a stream of blood running from her nose. And Ino was out of her seat yelling at Naruto about being a "pervert" and "how could you make a technique like that." Hinata just fought trying to pass out as she admired Naruto's henged state.

_At least if Ino gets mad at him when he does this it'll give me an advantage_. Hinata thought.

"Perverts." Naruto said cutely, blowing a kiss towards the unconscious forms of Ebisu and the Hokage before dropping the illusion and exiting the office. Konohamaru looked back and forth between the two prone forms before announcing "cool!" and running out the door to chase after Naruto.

Kurenai looked down as her two remaining students turned to look at her.

"I swear, I am going to have a talk with that boy about using that technique. Now, go ahead, run along. I'm sure you have stuff you want to do this afternoon. We'll begin training tomorrow morning." Kurenai said, ushering her students out of the room. Looking back at the prone forms of Ebisu and the Hokage she shook her head before exiting the office herself.

**Ichiraku Ramen Bar, Six PM**

Ino and Hinata had spent the afternoon shopping and getting to know one another a little bit better. Naruto on the other hand had spent the afternoon being stalked by Konohamaru, who kept demanding that Naruto teach him the "Kage Killer" that he had used on his grandfather. Despite his pranking nature Naruto did still have a high level of respect for women. He had created the Seiteki no Jutsu as a weapon against unsuspecting perverts, but he did not wish to earn the ire of his teammates, sensei, or mother by teaching it to anyone else. Eventually he was worn down, and promised to teach Konohamaru the technique someday, as long as he would work hard to learn to be a ninja the proper way, rather than taking Ebisu's shortcuts. After giving the gaki a list of exercises to do every day to help him build up his charka Naruto vacated the area before Ebisu could find him.

By the time Ino and Hinata reach Ichiraku they found Naruto and Kiba chatting away amiably.

"And you say your sensei was caught by that? I swear Kiba the simplest pranks are the best. High level ninja get too used to sensei charka or advanced traps that the simple things get them every time. I mean, just this morning I got both my mom AND Rin with a bucket of water over the door." Naruto was saying loudly as the old man who ran the shop was preparing several large bowls of ramen.

"You really shouldn't do that to your mom Naruto." Hinata said as she took a seat on the other side of Kiba from Naruto.

"Seriously you baka. What's wrong with you?" Ino asked as she took the seat next to Naruto, smacking him in the back of the head.

Kiba laughed as Naruto rubbed at the back of his head. "Ow! Hey, I only use it on the deserving. You know, perverts and Mizuki and such."

Ino stared at Naruto. "You used that on Mizuki? Was that how you defeated him, an under handed trick?" she asked.

Naruto suddenly looked uncomfortable, but was saved from having to reply by Hinata.

"Ino, I don't think Naruto wants to discuss last night yet, so will you please let it drop? He used that…technique, on Mizuki during our exams because Mizuki had been sabotaging him and he was fed up with it." Hinata spoke, looking Ino straight in the eyes.

"Oh…" Ino responded looking down, feeling guilt for accusing Naruto like that.

"Here you go kids, a bowl of beef ramen for you Kiba, and a bowl of miso ramen and a bowl of pork ramen for you Naruto. Seriously though kid, are you sure you'll be able to eat all you ordered." Old man Ichiraku asked as he served Naruto and Kiba.

Naruto, who had dug into his ramen with gusto, stopped eating long enough to reply.

"I'msureoldmansokeepem'coming." Was Naruto's hurried reply before he dug back into his food.

Hinata chuckled, and Ino was struck as she realized the twenty or so empty bowls sitting next to the vats of ramen were likely all for Naruto.

_They weren't kidding about his appetite…and I can't cook at all…_ Ino thought to herself dejectedly.

Ino was brought back to reality by Ayame, old man Ichiraku's daughter, asking her what she would like. Ino ordered a bowl of vegetable ramen. She would have returned to her thoughts, But Hinata spoke up.

"So Kiba," Hinata said, "What's your sensei like?"

Kiba snorted into his ramen. "Our sensei's so lame; I don't even know how he made Jounin. He wears a mask over his face and his hitai-ate pulled down over his left eye, and all we learned from his introduction was his name."

Naruto snorted. "I could tell you a thing or two about him, but he might get annoyed with me." Naruto glanced sideways slyly.

Everyone else stopped eating to stare at him.

"Rea-ly now?" Ino asked. "And how would you know about his sensei when he himself didn't learn anything about him?"

Naruto took another slurp of his ramen before responding. "Simple. The pervert was one of my father's students. I've known him most of my life."

Ino balked before getting the intimation. "You mean you made THAT technique to use against Kiba's sensei!!" She yelled at him, forcing everyone nearby to cover their ears.

Naruto just sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Well, he was a pervert and when my mom would ask him to watch me or help with my training he'd just spend the time reading those Icha Icha books." He said after a moment.

Hinata blushed, having accidentally picked one of said books up in the bookstore once. Her blush deepened as her subconscious replaced the characters in the section she had read with her and Naruto.

Kiba snorted. "Yeah, well, I hope that isn't true. If my sensei doesn't actually teach me, I'm going to have to find someone to help, and that will probably be a pain." Kiba sighed when he had finished speaking.

Any further discussion by anyone was stalled by the arrival of Hinata and Ino's ramen, and by Naruto's next round. By the time everyone had finished they were all starting to feel tired. They all said their goodbyes and headed in different directions.

At least, that's what it looked like at first. Five minutes after leaving Ichiraku Hinata found herself face to face with a very nervous Ino.

"Um, Hinata, can I speak with you for a moment?" Ino squeaked out nervously, unusual for the normally brash and loud kunoichi.

"Un. Go right ahead Ino-chan." Hinata replied.

Ino instantly felt a little guilty, as Hinata had chosen to mark her as a friend just before she challenged her as a rival.

_Why do all my friends have to be my rivals? Why?_

"Um…you like Naruto too, don't you?"

Hinata was taken aback. She had noticed Ino's interest in their teammate, but hadn't expected her to be this up front about it.

"Yes, I do. Why do you ask?" Hinata crossed her arms. Ino looked at the ground again before looking up, determination in her eyes.

"Because I like him too. He made me reevaluate things, made me realize that the only reason I was even interested in that cold fish of an Uchiha was because a rivalry with Sakura kept me close t her." Ino said firmly.

Hinata was surprised. Ino had always seemed to be one of Sasuke's most loyal fan girls.

Hinata's face darkened.

"And, I'm glad to be getting to know you better, but, having finally been knocked out of my stupid ways I've realized something. I want a guy who will smile, who will laugh, who will treat me right, even if he is at times a goofball and an idiot. So…so know this. If you want Naruto, you'll have to beat me."

Hinata's pure and honest laughter rang out, confusing Ino. When she finally stopped laughing she finally answered Ino.

"Ino, you do realize what Naruto's position means, don't you?"

Ino stared at Hinata blankly, clearly not knowing what Hinata meant.

"Naruto is the last male heir to not one but two clans. When he turns eighteen the clan restoration laws will go into effect and he'll have to marry multiple women in order to reestablish the Uzumaki and Namikaze clans. Of course, knowing Naruto, he's going to want to marry skilled kunoichi, not some simpering fan girls, and since those same laws will apply to the Uchiha we certainly won't have to worry about Sakura, but it means that we both need to become skilled kunoichi if we want to snag Naruto. Not fight one another."

Ino blinked for another moment before replying.

"How…how do you know so much about clan law Hinata? You never struck me as the bookish type."

Hinata's smile disappeared. "It's-it's because someday, I hope to leave my clan. So I have been carefully studying everything I can find on clan law. When the time comes, I want to be able to escape my clan without them being able to use any loopholes or retain any control on me. So far…so far I haven't found a way."

Hinata paused for a moment, trying not to cry.

"But I'll keep trying. I'm sure I'll find something."

As Hinata began crying and dropped to her knees she found herself embraced in a hug by Ino.

"Don't worry Hinata, everything will be alright. You're a shinobi of the Leaf now. I'll support you, and I'm sure Naruto will too. Just, be strong."

They stayed like that for several minutes before finally standing again, Hinata wiping the tears from her eyes.

"So, it's agreed then, right? We'll train to be the best kunoichi possible, so that we can get Naruto's attention." Ino said, determination in her eyes, reaching her hand out.

"It's agreed. We'll get Naruto for ourselves, and we'll keep away any simpering fan girls not worthy of his attention." Hinata said with the same determination in her eyes as she reached out and took Ino's hand, shaking it.

After sharing a look both girls separated and headed their separate ways.

**Uzumaki-Namikaze Compound**

Rin looked up from doing the dishes as Naruto swung in through an open window, a backpack full of food on his back.

"Hi Rin. Is mom still awake?" he asked as he swung his pack off and began to unload the contents. Rin chuckled.

"No, she already went to bed. We missed you at dinner tonight."

Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yeah, sorry about that Aunt Rin. My new teammates and I met up with Kiba for dinner. He got stuck with that Uchiha and one of his fan girls."

Rin winced. Kiba had seemed like a nice boy, and from what she had heard from her friends in Konoha the last loyal Uchiha was a real dead fish of a personality.

"And what about you Naruto? Who did you get teamed with?" Rin asked, drying the final plate and turning to face her nephew.

"I got placed on a team with Hinata and the Yamanaka girl, Ino. Needless to say, Ino seems to have ceased being an obsessive Sasuke fan girl, which is a good thing. I'm just afraid she might start fan girling on me instead, which is a not so good thing."

Naruto shuddered at the thought. He liked girls, a lot, but he hated simpering fan girls who couldn't stand on their own two feet. He knew too many strong kunoichi to respect such a girl after all.

"Well, not too bad. Who is your instructor?" Rin inquired.

"Yuhi Kurenai." Naruto replied. "Apparently she graduated the Academy when she was pretty young, so she must be pretty skilled."

Rin thought for a moment. "Kurenai…Kurenai…oh yes, I remember now. She's supposed to be an expert with genjutsu." Rin got an evil grin and Naruto wilted. "Which if I'm remembering properly you absolutely suck at."

Naruto winced "You don't have to remind me every single TIME Rin. It's not my fault that my charka control still needs work."

_**Hey! It's not my fault either Kit. I didn't choose to be sealed in you. Besides, as your chakra coils stabilize and the mixing of our chakras becomes more fluid the better your control gets.**_

_I know, I know Kyuubi. It just gets so tiresome to always be reminded that my control sucks everytime genjutsu gets brought up, that's all._

Rin's laughter interrupted his discussion with the Kyuubi.

"Sorry Naruto, it's just too easy. Besides, given the prank you pulled this morning it's the simplest and least damaging revenge I could come up with. Now, you should get to bed. You'll have a long day ahead of you tomorrow. Just remember, you need to meet your mother and I at six at Hikaru's for dinner. Invite your teammates if you wish. We're going to take you to your new apartment after dinner."

Rin didn't get any farther as she found herself embraced in a tight hug by Naruto, who was repeating at hyper speed "thankyouthankyouthankyou." Rin just smiled and hugged back until Naruto finally released her.

"Your mother and I signed the lease earlier today. We'll take care of getting your stuff moved in tomorrow, along with some basic furniture we are having delivered tomorrow. We felt that, well, since you are now a full shinobi of Konoha that you should have a place to live in town. It's too inconvenient for you to be an active shinobi and be living a mile outside of town. Now, go get some sleep. Assuming they haven't changed things since I took my genin exam you'll have a pretty busy day tomorrow."

Naruto grinned and yelled one last "thank you" back over his shoulder as he shot out of the kitchen. Rin chuckled and went to work putting the groceries away.

**AN: Ok, first, I want to apologize to all of you who thought the cliffhanger was leading up to a fight between Naruto and Sasuke. That was evil of me, I admit it. Truth is, a fight with Sasuke in this sort of situation would not only be against this Naruto's code, but would also force him to reveal more of his abilities to the teme than he wants to at the moment. Don't worry; there will be a Naruto Sasuke fight eventually, just not today. As to the skipping over the Konohamaru section, I frankly find that a slightly boring part to rewrite, especially since I won't be changing the Konohamaru stuff up more than delaying when Naruto teaches him the "Kage Killer" and having Naruto drive him to train properly more easily. Thus I only dealt with the part in the Hokage's office directly, and the later parts as a flashback. Anyways, I hope that you all enjoy this chapter. I kept hitting writers block while working on it, but I was determined to complete the entire day in this chapter, and here is the result. Please remember to R&R!! PS: Omake at the bottom of page  
**

**Translation: It was recently brought to my attention that I missed a few translations in the first chapter and a few later, so here are the ones I caught, along with new ones. Please go ahead and point out if I miss a translation at any point.**

**Un – Yes/yeah**

**Seiteki no Jutsu – Sexy no Jutsu**

**Raiton: Dengeki Haaku – Lightning Release: Shocking Grasp**

**Kagemusha – Shadow Warrior**

**Nagareboshigakure no Sato – Village Hidden Among Shooting Stars**

**Bento – A Japanese lunchbox, usually consisting of rice, a meat dish, veggies, and another dish, usually something pickled or sweet.**

**Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Team 8 experiences their final test, Naruto unveils his true fighting style, and Hinata notices something different abotu Naruto.  
**

Phoenix Rising Omake #1: "When Pigs Fly"

Location: Somewhere in the Country of Wind

Itachi and Kisame were standing outside of a grocery store, arguing. There was really only one thing the pair ever argued over, and that was Itachi's Pocky addiction. Kisame was trying to get Itachi to limit the amount of Pocky he eats each week, because his excessive consumption was ruining their grocery bills.

"I'm just saying, if we limit you to a certain number of a boxes a week, not only will we not be wasting money on Pocky all the time, but you'll appreciate the flavors you buy even more." Itachi said, pleading with the Uchiha.

"..."

"Come on man! I'm tired of us always going broke because we are spending so much money on groceries all the time. I mean, whats the point of being in Akatsuki and making all this money if we never have any to buy anything cool?"

"...fine. I'll cut back on my Pocky consumption to sixteen boxes a week..."

Kisame began to look happy.

"...as soon as pigs fly..."

Kisame's face fell. Right at that moment he and Itachi heard a whistling sound and looked up. Overhead first one pig and then another when shooting through the air.

Kisame blinked and Itachi sweatdropped. Kisame turned to look at Itachi again.

"...fine, you win. I'll cut back on Pocky. Damn, Kami must have it in for me."

Meanwhile, on the other end of town, a drunk Jiraiya had been being chased by a crowd of angry women. When he ducked into a butchers shop to escape he slammed into a pile of pig carcasses so hard he sent them flying into the air, only to come crashing down far on the other side of town. It would be many years before Kisame would learn the truth behind how he got Itachi to cut back on Pocky. When he did, he would buy Jiraiya an entire warehouse full of alcohol. But that, is another story.


	8. Chapter 8: Survival Test

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 8 – Survival Test

The members of Team 8 met promptly at nine the next morning at training ground number twenty. Naruto was the first to arrive, and he spent the few minutes he had before the others showed up to scout out the terrain of the training ground out of curiosity. A few minutes later Hinata and Ino showed up together, chatting animatedly about some topic, but Naruto couldn't hear them from where he was. He hopped down and walked over to join them in waiting for their sensei to arrive.

Precisely at nine am Kurenai appeared before her students in a leaf shunshin. All three genin instantly stood at attention. Kurenai nodded slightly, acknowledging their decorum.

"Now, listen up." She said abruptly. "Training ground twenty is a variable terrain training ground consisting of wide open spaces and clusters of large boulders. Today's exercise will be your final test. And it has a fail rate of over 66. And it is already guaranteed that at least one of you will fail this test."

"WHAT!?" Ino exclaimed loudly, her eyes so wide they had gone white. "What the hell are you talking about?! I thought we took all our exams already."

Kurenai took a deep breath before continuing. "All those tests were designed to determine whether you had what it takes to test for genin. This is your real genin exam." Kurenai held up her hand, two bells dangling from it.

"The test is simple. You have until noon to get these bells from me. Those who manage to get a bell will pass and will be given lunch. Those who fail to get a bell will be tied to a post while those who passed eat lunch, and will then be sent back to the Academy for another year. As there are only two bells, this means that at least one of you is going to fail."

Kurenai looked over her students. Ino still looked pissed off, Hinata seemed hesitant, and Naruto…Naruto was smirking. Cockiness, anger, and hesitancy, Kurenai mentally sighed. How was she ever going to get these three to work as a team with those sorts of hang ups?

"With that said, your exam starts now!" Kurenai punctuated this last part by turning on a timer and vanishing in a leaf shunshin.

From her hiding spot Kurenai watched and observed as her team looked around for a few seconds before turning to face one another.

"Well guys? What do you think? I for one don't buy this whole one person is guaranteed to fail thing. My mom always told me that genin teams are put together to best balance out complimentary abilities, so that no one team is too strong or too weak. No way they would go to that much effort if two thirds of the members are just going to be failed during a surprise exam." Naruto closed his eyes as he awaited his teammate's responses. He didn't have long to wait, as after a moment Hinata spoke up.

"Um, Naruto. I don't know if the threat of failing is real or not, but Iruka-sensei always taught us that you should take everything seriously in matters of being a shinobi. I don't think we can afford to assume that it's a ruse of some kind."

Naruto "hmmed" and looked down at the ground for a moment.

"Well, how about we just make a pact?" Ino spoke up. "We make a pact to work together to get those two bells from Kurenai, and then we use a simple game of a chance to determine who gets to eat and who gets tied to the post."

Naruto and Hinata looked at one another for a moment before looking back at Ino.

"I mean, if at least one of us is going to fail no matter what, we might as well work as a team to get the bells and let fate decide who stays back another year."

Naruto had to admit that Ino's plan had merit. After thinking it over for a moment he spoke up. "I'm in Ino. Hinata, are you ok with this plan?"

Hinata didn't waste anytime speaking up. "No, I'm not ok with this plan." She grinned. "I'm far more than simply ok with it. Let's get those bells and prove to Kurenai how stupid such a rule is."

Hinata stuck her hand out, and it was promptly covered by both Ino and Naruto's hands. All three genin grinned at one another.

Nearly three hours later they had had no luck in getting the bells from Kurenai. No matter what they did she always seemed to be one step ahead, even when Hinata utilized her Byakugan to see through the numerous genjutsu that Kurenai had been weaving as they hunted her through training area twenty. Currently Naruto was hanging upside down twenty feet above the ground, caught in a simple trap snare Kurenai had lured him into. Ino was nursing a headache from a blow she had taken while trying to snag the bells from Kurenai, and Hinata was staying hidden in the bushes.

_Crap. We don't have much time left. If we don't get those bells soon we'll all fail._ Hinata thought as she frantically worked possible means of approach to try to catch Kurenai unawares. She was just about to get totally frustrated when a beetle walked in front of her and began to write in the dirt. Hinata activated her Byakugan momentarily and realized that Naruto had merely henged a Kage Bunshin into a beetle in order to get a message to her. Pretty smart trick she had to admit.

You and Ino do a head-on pincer strike on Kurenai. Trust me.

_What in the world do you have planned Naruto?_ Hinata wondered as she wiped away the message before moving out of hiding and motioning for Ino to match her movements. The two kunoichi went into a fighting stance as Kurenai appraised them from her position in the middle of the clearing.

_**Any moment now Kit…**_

Without any warning Ino and Hinata shot forward, dodging Kurenai's strikes and diving for the bells. But Kurenai performed a Kawarimi at the last moment, leaving a section of log in her place.

_**Now!**_

On cue Naruto performed a rapid series of hand seals.

"DAI KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!!"

The entire training ground was suddenly covered in thousands of Kage Bunshin. Hinata caught sight of Naruto in her Byakugan as this occurred and was momentarily confused.

_Two colors of chakra? What does that mean? Could this have to do with the secret Naruto is hiding?_

A second later two Kage Bunshin came scrambling towards the three genin over the tops of the boulders, leaping and scrambling on all fours like animals, others sacrificing themselves to defend them from Kurenai's strikes as the bunshins brought the bells to Ino and Hinata, dropping one in each of their hands as Kurenai reentered the clearing. Naruto released his seal and the Kage Bunshin began to vanish rapidly. Naruto cut himself down from the snare and walked over to Hinata and Ino, who had turned to look at him.

"You two deserve it." He said before they could ask. "I can always take the exam again next year, but you two both have something to prove." Naruto was instantly blown backwards as two irate kunoichi began to harangue him for being an idiot. Naruto was saved a beating by Kurenai's decisive interjection.

"Congratulations. You all pass."

Ino and Hinata paused, their fists mere centimeters away from Naruto's face, turning their heads to look back at their sensei.

"What do you mean we all pass? You told us only two of us could pass."

Kurenai smiled softly. "I lied. The real purpose of this exam is to determine how you will behave in a situation where one must be sacrificed for the good of the others. It's designed both to test and promote teamwork, as well as to weed out those who do not properly understand a shinobi's role and who care more about their own position and power than that of their team."

Kurenai was pleased to observe that all three of her genin were now standing and giving her their full attention.

"You three not only demonstrated that you can work as a team toward a common goal, even when burdened with the knowledge that one or more of you might not come out of the situation., but you also demonstrated an ability to use one another's abilities to your advantage. Hinata, very nice use of the Byakugan to find where I was hiding. And Naruto, that was an effective, if somewhat unorthodox, use of Kage Bunshin. Flooding the field with them when I used Kawarimi, relying on that momentary feeling of security that ninja falsely have when they use that technique to ambush me and get the bells. Quite inventive."

Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his head at the praise.

"And Ino, nice use of kunai and senbon to attempt to disable me when you had me in the open. You just need to learn to be less obvious when using them. Now, I did bring bento lunches, but I only brought enough for three people. So I've decided, that since you made such a spectacular showing, I'm going to take you out for lunch."

Her last announcement drew a cheer from Naruto and a chuckle from Ino and Hinata as they turned to go grab their bags from where they had dropped them at the beginning of the exam.

**Konoha Shopping District, Near Hokage's Tower**

The restaurant Kurenai took them to was called Gilded Edge, and catered specifically to Konoha shinobi. Kurenai explained that the owner had lost a leg in the last shinobi war, and had retired and founded a restaurant specifically designed to appeal to shinobi. Everything from the décor to the menu was designed specifically to please a shinobi's sense of taste and aesthetics. The building was solidly constructed, with metal reinforcements in the beams and what looked like Suiton-conjuring seals stuck to them at regular intervals. The color scheme was a mix of browns and greens, with very few bright colors. Hinata had to admit, it certainly fit most of the shinobi who were there when they entered. With one noticeable exception, who was sitting at the bar munching on a stick of dango, every person in the place was wearing a green vest and the drab clothing most Konoha shinobi were known for.

While they waited for their food Kurenai explained how their training was going to go.

"Unless otherwise instructed, you'll meet me at nine am every morning at the entrance to training ground sixteen. We'll work together on training until noon, when we'll grab a quick lunch. Then we'll head to the Hokage's tower and take a D-rank mission. After that the time will be yours to do with as you see fit, but I will be assigning each of you exercises to work on once I've had more time to properly evaluate you."

"Um, Kurenai-sensei? What kind of training are you going to be giving us?" Ino asked.

"I'm going to be teaching you to be proper shinobi. I'll be helping you discover where your strengths and weaknesses lie, and helping you shore up your weaknesses and improve upon your strengths." Kurenai replied.

Ino smiled, her curiosity satisfied.

When they had finished their meal Kurenai dismissed them, reminding them to meet her at training ground sixteen the next morning. Hinata said her own goodbyes to her teammates and ran off. There was a clan gathering that evening, and she wanted to be presentable, even if she did want to leave the clan someday.

This left Ino and Naruto standing alone in the middle of a street on a sunny afternoon with absolutely nothing to do. Ino was sorely tempted to ask Naruto out on a date, but she had too much respect for her new friends to do that. She remembered the discussion she had had that morning with Hinata, and she didn't want to ruin her new friendship. So, after a few slightly awkward moments she finally spoke up.

"Well, I think I'm going to head home. That exam today was pretty strenuous, and I really don't want to stink like a ferret any longer."

Naruto laughed and Ino fought the confusing urge to punch him and hug him at the same time. When Naruto ceased laughing, he just smiled for a moment before replying.

"That's ok Ino. I need to go help my mom move me into my new apartment anyways. I'll see you tomorrow morning though, so we won't be apart for too long gorgeous."

Naruto winked at Ino before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

Ino stood there dumbstruck.

_Was…was he just flirting with me?_

It was several long moments before Ino could finally move again, but once she did she smiled softly and ran home with a song in her heart.

**Naruto's New Apartment, across the street from Hikaru's, 7PM**

"Finally!" Naruto exclaimed, the last of his Kage Bunshin having just put his new couch in place and then dismissed them selves.

Naruto dusted his hands off and then stepped back next to his mom and Rin, proudly surveying the last five hours of hard work. His apartment was now fully organized and fully decorated. He had a futon couch, a coffee table, and a few arm chairs in his living room, along with several bookcases. His kitchen was fully stocked; although Naruto wouldn't need to use it much given he was living across the street from Hikaru's. His clothes were all organized in his closest and dresser and he had a second closet for all his shinobi gear.

"Well Naruto, it certainly looks organized enough. The only question is how long it will stay that way." Kushina said, smiling.

Naruto just snorted.

"Don't get your hopes up Kushina. You know better than anyone that Naruto and organized living space just don't mix." Rin added with a grin and a wink at Naruto. "So, shall we eat dinner now that the table is finally set up?"

Both Naruto and Kushina seconded that, and they quickly opened several sealed containers of food from Hikaru's. Naruto dug rapidly into a spicy chicken dish while his aunt and mom both went for the more tame beef teriyaki, and after a few minutes of frantic eating Rin spoke up after taking a sip of her beer.

"So Naruto, tell us, how did your first day go."

Naruto nearly choked on his food. It took Rin and Kushina several seconds to realize he was trying not to die laughing. When he finally calmed down Naruto swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Well, I'm sure it won't come as any surprise to either of you" Naruto said, sending mock accusatory stares at both of them. "But today was just another exam, one meant to test our effictiveness and ability to work together as a team. I mean, really mom. You couldn't have given me some warning beforehand?"

Kushina smiled at her son.

"You know I couldn't have. The entire point of the exam is ruined if the subjects are informed about its true nature before hand."

Naruto sighed again. "Oh well. All's well that ends well." Naruto was interrupted by a yawn.

"Hmm, and I guess that should be my cue to head to bead. Night mom. Night Aunt Rin." Naruto said as he got up from the table.

"Goodnight Naruto." They both replied as he trudged off to bed. When he was out of earshot they resumed talking quietly.

"Is the reason he's so tired lately because of what Kyuubi's been doing to his chakra coils?" Rin asked softly.

"Yes," Kushina replied, "If I understand what she is doing right, it's taking a lot of energy out of Naruto to perform the adjustments, and especially to perform them safely. Once his coils stabilize he'll get his full energy back. Even without that it's unnoticeable to most people."

Both women looked down at the table and sighed; unbeknownst to them a small red lizard had crawled inside the apartment and listened to the entire exchange. As it crept out of the apartment to report to its master it met an untimely end as an oddly-curved kunai with an eight-pointed star inscribed on it slammed into its skull, killing it instantly. On the other side of the street Oyama Hikaru flicked her wrist and drew the kunai back to her, sliding it back into a hidden holster under her jacket.

End Chapter

**AN: Sorry it's such a short chapter, but you got a really big chapter last time so you can forgive me this time for it not being as long as the others. Also, as I'm a bit burnt out right now, I'm going to go take a very long nap. Again, parden the short chapter and the short Author's Note. I promise I'll try to write a bgigger chapter again nt time.**


	9. Chapter 9: Training

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 9: Training

**Hokage's Office, 9PM**

The Sandaime Hokage sat wearily behind his desk. Before him stood ten Jounin instructors and Iruka, who was reading the collated report on the 'survival tests."

"Team 1. Failed. Team 2. Failed…" It continued in this manner until "Team 7. Passed."

Everyone in the room looked at Hatake Kakashi in surprise that he had passed a team. Sarutobi merely raised an eyebrow, pleased that Hatake took his request that he train the last Uchiha to heart.

"Team 8. Passed."

"With flying colors, I might add." Kurenai interjected, earning her a glower from Iruka before he continued.

"Team 10. Passed. Team 11. Passed." Iruka finished speaking and rolled up the scroll.

"Hmmm. So, four teams out of ten. Not bad. Not bad at all. Tell me, what are your opinions so far of your teams." Sarutobi asked.

"A bunch of idiots." Hatake Kakashi spoke bluntly.

"Surprising and inventive." Yuhi Kurenai said proudly.

"Troublesome." Sarutobi Asuma said, not realizing he had picked up his student's favorite word after only a couple of hours.

"A bunch of misfits. I'm surprised they passed." Gekko Hayate finished with a cough.

Sarutobi sighed and stamped several forms, speaking as he did so.

"Teams 7, 8, 10, and 11 are hereby officially convened under the listed Jounin instructors. The members therein are officially registered as Genin of Konoha. Dismissed."

The ten Jounin dispersed in various means, some walking out of the room, while others shunshined away. Iruka remained behind.

"Hokage-sama, I'm worried about Naruto." Iruka said after a few moments.

Sarutobi looked up from the paperwork on his desk.

"I'm afraid that the social isolation he has been under, caused because of the hatred most of the village holds for him, will ultimately lead to him lashing out."

Sarutobi could see that Iruka was honestly worried. After a long moment Sarutobi finally replied.

"I don't think we have anything to worry about, Iruka. Despite that, despite everything that the villagers think about him or have attempted to do to him when he has entered the village, he still views it as his duty as the Yondaime's son to protect Konoha."

The Hokage went back to smoking his pipe as he returned his focus to the thrice-damned paperwork.

* * *

The next morning Naruto arrived at Training Ground Sixteen to find Hinata and Ino already waiting for him. The two kunoichi smiled and waved at him as he walked between the posts. Naruto smiled and waved back before dropping his pack on the ground and dropping to the ground on all fours, promptly beginning a series of pushups. When he looked up a few moments later he stopped, seeing the confused looks on both Hinata and Ino's faces.

"What?" he asked, "You didn't think I was just naturally in this kind of shape did you? I work out a lot."

Naruto grinned and pushed off with his feet, ending in a hand stand before he removed one hand from the ground, balancing on a single hand.

"My dream is to be Hokage one day, after all. That means I need to be the strongest ninja."

Naruto gave both girls a fox like grin before he closes his eyes and began performing hand seals with one hand while he began to pushups into the air one handed. Hinata and Ino just stared in shock before turning slowly to look at one another. Both girls shared the same though.

_Hot…_

Their various fantasies were interrupted by the arrival of Kurenai, striding confidently between the two posts Naruto had entered earlier. As Naruto launched into the air and performed a flip before landing on his feet he noticed that his new sensei had several scrolls under her left arm and a few small cream colored cards in her right hand.

"Good morning team. I trust all of you are ready for your evaluations." Kurenai said as she approached, setting down the scrolls and the cream colored cards. "Now, first, I need to know what jutsus you all know. It will give me an idea of where your skills with jutsu are, as well as a beginning for me to plan out your training. Naruto, why don't you go first?"

Naruto grinned and took a seat in front of Kurenai as she sat down. Ino and Hinata walked over and joined him. Once he was settled, waiting for his two teammates to be seated first Kurenai noted, Naruto began.

"Well, let's see. There's the Academy jutsus of course, Bunshin, Henge, and Nawanuke. I also know Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, Kawarimi, Seiteki no Jutsu…"

All three kunoichi groaned at the mention of 'that' jutsu.

"…Raiton: Dengeki Haaku, and Sen'eijashu." Naruto finished, smiling.

Kurenai had to blink at this last one.

"Did you just say…Sen'eijashu?" She inquired, suspicious.

Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. Why?"

Kurenai studied him with a calculating gaze for a moment.

"How, may I ask, do you know that jutsu?" she finally asked.

Naruto looked at her with confusion.

"How? Didn't it say in my file Kurenai-sensei? I received specialized training from Mitarashi Anko for most of the past year."

Kurenai shook her head, sighing.

_No matter where I go 'she' still manages to reach me. I swear, Kami must have it in for me._ She thought.

"Um, Naruto-kun, that jutsu. Why is sensei surprised that you know it?" Hinata asked.

Kurenai looked up from her musings and watched as Naruto replied. As she did, she finally took a closer look at Hinata. She had escorted her to the Academy when she was younger, but there was barely a trace remaining of the shy timid girl she remembered.

"Well, probably because it's a rare jutsu, and only a few Jounins know it, that's all." Naruto replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"Well, interesting Naruto. Now, Hinata, how about you?"

Hinata took a breath before speaking confidently.

_I don't want to seem timid in front of Naruto. _Hinata thought.

"Well, I know all three Academy Jutsus as well. And…um…well, I also know one of my family's special techniques, Hakke Rokujūyon Shō."

_Stupid, stupid, stupid. Getting nervous isn't going to do you any good. _Hinata thought to herself.

Kurenai blinked. _She knows the H__akke Rokujūyon Shō? Her chakra control must be impressive, even for a Hyuuga._ She thought to herself.

"Very impressive as well Hinata. And you Ino?" She asked, turning towards the blond.

Kurenai had to admit to herself that she had been surprised when she was assigned Ino. She had expected Asuma's request that the Ino-Shika-Cho trinity be formed from this generation. Apparently the Hokage cared more about building strong teams than about giving that lazy-ass son of his an easy job.

Ino grinned and leant forward on her knees, excited for her turn.

_I hope Naruto is impressed by what I know._

"I know all three Academy jutsus as well sensei. On top of that I also know my family's Shintenshin no jutsu, and my father has been teaching me Kawarimi, though I'm having trouble mastering it."

"Ne, Ino-chan." Naruto interrupted, "Have you tried visualizing yourself in the object' place rather than the object in your place?"

Ino looked at Naruto blankly for a moment before replying. "No…my dad says you're supposed to visualize the object in your place. He says doing this when you perform the jutsu right will cause you to switch places with the object."

Kurenai was the one to reply, having understood what Naruto was getting at. "While that is technically true Ino, there are those who that just doesn't work for. For some, like Naruto I'm guessing…" Naruto's sheepish grin confirmed her suspicions. "…and now possibly you, imagining yourself in the object's place is actually easier, as you are focusing on your movement and letting the object be swapped by the chakra, rather than using more chakra to force the object to come to you and then switch."

She looked at Naruto again. "I'm impressed Naruto. Most shinobi aren't aware of the distinction. I'm guessing you had your own trouble mastering the technique as well?"

Naruto just nodded. Ino's embarrassment at having trouble with it evaporated as she realized that the guy she now liked had had difficulty learning it as well. Hinata meanwhile felt embarrassed that she hadn't learned the jutsu either.

"Ok, so jutsu wise Naruto seems to have learned several, including several advanced techniques. Ino has learned one of her family's special clan techniques, and Hinata has learned the first of her clan's most advanced jutsus. I'm very impressed with all of you. Now, I'm not going to teach you any jutsus beyond Kawarimi at first, but I am going to assign some chakra control exercises until I feel you are ready to learn some new techniques. But first, I need to know one thing so I can decide what jutsus to teach you."

Kurenai picked up one of the cream colored cards and held it in her hands.

"This card" she explained "is a tool used to determine a shinobi's elemental affinity. Now, which of you know what that means?"

Hinata and Ino both raised their hands, remembering the lecture on the subject. Naruto looked slightly confused.

"Ino, why don't you explain for Naruto's benefit?" Kurenai asked, smiling faintly.

Ino grinned from ear to ear before she began explaining.

"All shinobi, with very rare exceptions, have an affinity for a specific element. This makes it much easier for them to perform jutsu of that element, as well as giving them the ability sometimes to apply the element to other techniques to modify them. Some people are actually born with multiple affinities of varying strengths, but it's rare."

Ino took a deep breath as she finally finished speaking, smiling.

"Oh…ok, that makes sense." Naruto replied enthusiastically, smiling now.

"Exactly right." Kurenai said. "Now, I'll demonstrate how to use the card first and then I'll explain how they work."

Kurenai pursed her lips as she focused some of her chakra into the card and Hinata, Ino, and Naruto all watched in amazement as the card became soggy.

"As you can see the card became soggy. This is because my chakra has a water affinity. If you have a wind affinity the card will cut in half, it will ignite if you have a fire affinity, crumble to dust for an earth affinity, and crinkle up for a lightning affinity. All you do is hold it and focus some of your chakra into it."

With this said she passed the remaining three cards out to her team.

"Now, you try, and let's see what your affinities are." Kurenai had to admit to herself that she was curious what their affinities would be, simply as their teacher and not because

_**Careful Kit. I know I haven't brought this up before, but my presence in you could affect this.**_

_What? Why?_

_**Because it is possible that you may have received my affinity on top of your own.**_

Naruto face palmed inside his own mind._ Ok, well, I guess I better hope for the best, and hope no one suspects something is up. Ino did say that some rare people have multiple affinities, so hopefully she and Hinata won't suspect anything._

While this discussion was going on inside his own head both Ino and Hinata had successfully used their cards. Naruto noted with some surprise that Hinata's had crinkled, and Ino's had turned soggy just like their sensei's. Naruto hurriedly focused on his own card before anyone noticed his distraction.

When he focused his chakra in the card it split in half instantly…

_Well, not really surprising. My dad was a wind chakra user afterall._

…only to have both halves ignite in a bright flame before burning to ash.

Ino, Hinata, and Kurenai all looked at Naruto, a sweat drop on Kurenai's forehead.

"Well, that was certainly…surprising. It appears that Naruto has a very strong affinity both for fire and wind." Kurenai said, composing herself. "Ino, you have an affinity for water. Hinata, you have an affinity for lightning." Hinata smiled and Ino cheered.

Kurenai gathered their destroyed cards and stuck them in a pouch before standing.

"Ok, now that I know that I'll instruct you in today's exercise." Kurenai said as her students all stood.

"Now, one of the most fundamental abilities a shinobi needs is good chakra control. There are a few exercises used to improve one's chakra control, and learning them also makes a shinobi more versatile in the field. The first and easiest of these is the ability to extrude chakra from the soles of your feet in order to stick to objects."

Kurenai demonstrated by performing a hand seal and walking over to a tree. She promptly proceeded to walk up the tree until she was hanging from the bottom of a branch about thirty feet up.

"Remaining attached to a tree requires a small amount of chakra, but it must be precise. And because the soles of your feet are the hardest areas to mold chakra, if you can master this you can theoretically master any jutsu."

Kurenai released her chakra flow and dropped, flipping and landing on her feet.

Now, I want each of you take a kunai and mark the point you reach. Use that line as a measure of how far you have gotten and try to get farther. Now, as you are just starting you should use a running start to get going up the tree."

Kurenai turned and began to walk back towards her bag. Behind her she could sense two of her students begin to mold chakra so that they could expel it from their feet, but the third…

"Um, sensei? Is it alright if I ask you for another exercise? Maybe taijutsu practice or a jutsu I could start learning?" Naruto asked from behind her.

She turned around and saw Ino and Hinata make it about halfway up a tree out of the corner of her eye.

"And why do you ask that? Do you think you are too good for a simple tree climbing exercise?" Kurenai crossed her arms.

"No. It's just that I've already mastered how to walk on surfaces and how to walk on water." Naruto replied with a shrug.

Kurenai looked at Naruto in shock. _He keeps surprising me._

"Hmm, well, I could do some taijutsu sparring with you while Hinata and Ino work on the tree climbing." Kurenai replied after a moment. Naruto grinned at this. "Meet me over at the field of posts over there and we'll do some sparring." Kurenai turned to face her other two students.

"Both of you keep working on this exercise. I'm going to spar with Naruto and evaluate his taijutsu, as it's been made clear that his exam scores are inaccurate." Ino was too busy focusing on climbing the tree without falling to hear her, but Hinata nodded in acknowledgment.

When Naruto finally joined Kurenai at the posts she found that he had shed his jacket, and was instead simply clothed in his pants and his green under shirt. Naruto hopped up onto a post about fifteen feet away from her, balancing smoothly on one foot, the rest of his body slipping into a taijutsu stance that she well recognized.

_Hebi Style…Damn Anko! You taught him your taijutsu two?!_ Kurenai thought dismayed. Sparring with her new genin was going to be a challenge right from the start it seemed.

Without any forewarning Kurenai rapidly moved across the posts, throwing the first set of blows. She was not surprised when Naruto rolled around her attacks like a snake, spiraling and striking back with light quick strikes, targeting weak points and pressure points.

_I take it back. You didn't just teach the gaki your style. You made sure he mastered it!_ Kurenai screamed inside her own head as the taijutsu spar developed rapidly into an all out battle that had the Jounin pulling out all the stops just to keep up.

* * *

That afternoon Team 8 gathered in the Hokage's office to receive their first mission. The three Genins' excitement at finally receiving a mission quickly died as they realized that D-rank missions were little more than glorified chores; in this particular case, helping rebuild a bar that had been damaged the previous week in a drunken shinobi brawl. Kurenai raised an eyebrow when Naruto let out a loud laugh when he heard the name of the bar. She quickly realized that Anko must have told the gaki about the fight, which she had been a part of. Kurenai was privately thankful that she hadn't let her friend drag her out that night, or she'd have ended up involved herself.

As the three Genin went to work repairing the interior of the restaurant Kurenai was quietly thankful that she seemed to have three dedicated and driven shinobi to train.

The next three weeks consisted of a standard routine. In the mornings Kurenai would either have them working on sparring, chakra control exercises, and a lecture on shinobi tactics or jutsus. In Naruto's case she spent extra time sparring with him, and was surprised one day two weeks into the routine when she arrived to find he had arrived early and that there were about fifty clones all meditating in the middle of the training ground. When she had asked him what he was doing his only reply was that he was "communing."

Kurenai of course realized instantly that he must mean with his 'prisoner.' When she asked why he needed fifty clones to commune with his prisoner Naruto's reply drew a raised eyebrow from the Genjutsu Mistress.

"Oh, they aren't communing. They're all thinking about applications and way to modify jutsus. There is an idea I've had for a technique, but I first need to think through a number of permutations before I try to develop it." He said matter-of-factly.

Kurenai couldn't believe her new student was talking so blithely about developing new techniques, but then, given how surprising his skills had turned out to be already, she wouldn't be surprised. If the gaki could actually pull it off. He was _his_ son after all. She didn't have a chance to inquire further though as her other two students showed up

Three weeks into this routine was when Kurenai finally began lecturing on the subject of her specialty, genjutsu.

Sitting in front of her students on a grassy section of the training ground, Kurenai began her lecture.

"Genjutsu differs from Ninjutsu in that rather than using chakra to perform direct attacks or manipulations of the environment, you instead use your chakra to manipulate others' perception of the environment. The level of control and focus required is also greater than most ninjutsus." She spoke, happy to be discussing her specialty. She noticed that all three of her charges were paying rapt attention, as they always did when she lectured.

_Well, I guess it is good for my ego that they hang on my every word. _Kurenai thought, smiling to herself.

"Um, sensei? Does that mean genjutsu are not combat techniques?" Ino asked with a look of curiosity on her face.

"Quite the opposite Ino. Not only can genjutsu, when applied properly, give a ninja an advantage over the enemy, but some of the more powerful genjutsu techniques are capable of injuring or even killing a target, simply by the power of suggestion." Kurenai noticed that as much attention as Naruto and Hinata were paying her lecture that Ino had an even more interested look on her face as usual.

_In fact,_ Kurenai noted, _she hasn't shot Naruto a blushing glance once during this lecture._

"In fact, some of my more powerful techniques can bind or kill an opponent with the power of suggestion. All it takes is for them to be distracted for mere moments and my genjutsu can get its hooks in them."

Kurenai noticed that Ino was now staring at her with a look of awe on her face, while Hinata's was merely thoughtful.

"Ne, Hinata. I guess all this is pretty boring to you, since you can see through any genjutsu with those Byakugan eyes of yours, ne?" Naruto asked, interrupting with a grin before Kurenai could continue.

Hinata blushed, and Kurenai noticed Ino look at her with a jealous look.

_Those girls…they really should just tell Naruto how they feel, but the boy seems oblivious._ Kurenai thought shaking her head ruefully. Meanwhile Naruto was dealing with inner thoughts himself.

_**I'm telling you Kit, both girls like you. Just ask one out already and end this dance. It's annoying.**_ Kyuubi sighed. _**Things were so much simpler in the summoning realm. You like someone you jump their bones and move on.**_

_Shut up Baka-kitsune. I'm trying not to cause a conflict between my teammates; if I ask one of them out the other will sure to be disappointed. _Naruto shouted back, mentally bopping Kyuubi over the head.

"Yes, while it's true that Hinata's eyes will allow her to see through most genjutsu, they must be active for them to work. She can still be caught by a genjutsu as easily as either of you if you aren't aware of your surroundings. Now, the reason I've brought up genjutsu is that the Hokage has informed me that he is going to assign us and another team a C-rank courier mission next week." Kurenai continued, drawing her three students' attention back to her.

"Um, sensei?" Hinata asked quietly. "If it's only a C-rank mission, why are two teams being assigned to it?"

"Because this is a regular courier run there is the danger that another country might try to intercept it. It's not highly sensitive material, but it's economically valuable. Since there is no known plan to steal the information it's merely listed as a C-rank mission, but the Hokage still assigns two teams since the likelihood of it being upgraded to a B or even A-rank mission is high." Said, explaining in her 'lecture mode.'

"Oh." was Hinata's short reply. Kurenai smiled at the girl before continuing.

"The point of all this is that during the mission, there is the possibility that teki-nin might attempt to steal the information. If they do, they are likely to use a genjutsu to trap and distract us to make their job easier. I want you all able to recognize and break a genjutsu before that happens."

Kurenai now had their full rapt attention.

"Now, there are two primary methods of breaking a genjutsu upon oneself. The first method involves suppressing one's chakra momentarily, causing the hooks of the genjutsu to slip. This is good if the genjutsu is tied to your own chakra. But if the genjutsu is tied to the natural chakra around you, or even to other ninja, it won't be as much help. This is the easiest method though. The other method involves channeling your own chakra into the subject of the genjutsu or illusion and disrupting it. However, which an area genjutsu or multiple subjects caught under it, this method is very impractical, as you would have to perform it individually on every single person caught in it. Naruto, could you use Henge please?"

Naruto grinned and performed a few quick hand seals, transforming into a copy of Uchiha Sasuke with a puff of smoke. Hinata blinked in surprise and Ino stared at Naruto. Inside Ino was torn between a sudden desire to glomp him; the desire to smack him over the head.

_Why do I feel this way? I gave up on Sasuke, I like Naruto now…_ Ino thought.

"Hinata, with your Byakugan activated you can tell that Naruto is under a Henge and you can see through it. But unless you do something he's still under the Henge and no one else can see him properly. But if I do this…" and Kurenai brought her hands together to form a seal, saying "Kai!" Naruto's Henge died in a puff of smoke, leaving the genin blinking. "I can break simple illusions and genjutsu."

Kurenai saw both Ino and Hinata's faces light up, but Naruto's face darkened.

_Is he annoyed that there is a method to break his Henge?_ Kurenai wondered. She didn't have to wonder long though.

"Kurenai-sensei?" Naruto asked. The fact that he used her name in this private place rather than simply calling her Sensei told her he had something serious to ask. "For reasons I'd rather not talk about right now, it's impossible for me to suppress my chakra. And my control isn't fine enough to perform the second method, at least not at that scale. Are there any other methods?" Naruto asked with a questioning look.

"Hmm. How do you know your control isn't fine enough Naruto?" Kurenai asked. Her question was swiftly followed by Hinata's comment that Naruto "should have more faith in yourself." Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his neck before continuing.

"Well, my Aunt tried to teach me that method a few years ago, and for some reason I just couldn't control it enough to break anything beyond a simple genjutsu tied to an object. But, because of my high chakra capacity and training I was doing to learn a special taijutsu style, she was able to help me develop an ability that I don't need seals for. Um, if you could put a light genjutsu on a kunai or something I could demonstrate."

Kurenai, curious as to what sort of ability he could have developed, pulled out a kunai and Henged it into a brick. Naruto took it from her proffered hand and placed it flat on the ground, pressing all five fingers of his right hand on top of it. Naruto smirked and then Kurenai felt a small pulse of chakra and suddenly the illusion vanished as if a wave had rolled over it. Her eyes opened wide in surprise.

"My my my, this is surprising. It seems that you can use a much more complicated technique." She said. All three genin looked at her in confusion, so she began to explain. "What Naruto just did is a variation on the third method of removing a genjutsu. It's rarely taught as it requires a large amount of chakra, and is indiscriminate in what genjutsu it affects. Hinata, you might be able to learn this if you wish, but Ino, I'm sorry to say that you likely lack the necessary skill to perform it." Ino looked dejected at this, but Kurenai noticed that Hinata was quietly comforting the girl.

"The reason is because what Naruto did is similar in nature to the Hyuuga Jyuuken. He projected a blast of chakra from his hand in such a manner as to wipe away any illusions in place. Hinata, if we can teach you to release the chakra as a diffuse wave rather than a strike, you may be able to learn this method as well. But, as you witnessed, its usefulness is limited to removing small illusions. The true third method actually involves a three hundred and sixty degree release of chakra in this manner, allowing a shinobi to completely slip free of any genjutsu on them without requiring hand seals, and in the case of those with a larger chakra reserve, allows them to remove genjutsu from their fellow shinobi. For the purposes of this mission, I'm guessing you want to be taught this more difficult method then?" Kurenai asked, sighing as all three genins' faces lit up.

_Well, better a group of overachievers than a lazy Nara, a hungry Akamichi, and an Aburame._ Kurenai respected the Aburame clan's skills, but their stoic behavior just creeped her out.

She proceeded to spend the rest of that morning teaching them the harder method of breaking genjutsu. While Ino barely managed to free herself using it, she demonstrated that she had mastered the Kai ability simply from watching Kurenai demonstrate it once. Hinata was able to create a pulse that reached a few feet away from hers, but it left her sweating and grinning afterwards. And Naruto caused several passing ANBU to come investigate the source of a chakra pulse that covered almost all of Konoha. Kurenai shook her head sighing as she explained to the ANBU just what had happened. Thankfully most of the villagers bought the Hokage's explanation to the council that an experimental jutsu had gone wrong.

That night at dinner Kiba let out a long howling laugh when Naruto informed him of his latest prank.

* * *

**Two days later, Northern Wind Country, Shortly before dusk**

A group of Iwa-nin were heading towards the border, hurriedly moving, hoping to exit the Country of Wind before Sunagakure realized that they had kidnapped one of the Kazekage's children.

The leader, Shiseiji Yogore, was disguised as a Suna ANBU, but his mask now dangled from his neck, revealing his Iwa head band and his scarred face. Shiseiji was a veteran of the war with Konoha, and received his injuries in battle against Konoha's Kiiroi Senkō himself.

He was followed by three other Iwa-nin, all disguised as Suna ANBU. Two of them carried swords at the ready, prepared to intercept any threat, while the third and largest, a bulky ninja named Daiyama Ishi, carried an unconscious and bundled up blond kunoichi.

Yogore grinned as the tree line of Hoshi no Kuni, the relatively small country situated between the Wind Country and the Earth Country. The section they were heading for was comprised of huge redwood forests almost the entire way through, with the exception of a couple major trade routes. It would limit any chance of them being spotted by shinobi of the small nation's village. While Iwagakure and Nagareboshigakure had a peace treaty, Yogore did not wish to push it by alerting them that Iwa had used their country as an escape route for a kidnapping attempt with their neighbors, Sunagakure. He was under orders to lie about the identity of his prisoner if he did encounter any Nagareboshi-nin on the return trip.

_Almost there. There is no sign of pursuit, so if we can just make it safely to the tree line Suna will never be able to track us._ He thought, his grin deepening. _And when we get back, this little bitch will be pumped for all the information we can get. And maybe the Tsuchikage will let me have her as a toy after they have finished interrogating her._

Yogore was torn from his dark musings as a huge stone wall rose out of the desert sands before them, stretching far off in both directions and completely blocking off the forest.

"State your business Shiseiji Yogore." A gruff male voice came from the base of the wall, drawing Yogore's attention, and ire.

"HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME YOU PIECE OF NAGAREBOSHI-BEN!" Yogore screamed, veins popping out on his face. One of his ninja stepped closer to him and spoke softly, calming him down.

"Um, sir? You did it again."

Yogore blinked and then looked around sheepishly. He had the bad fortune of being named by a drunk uncle, who thought it would be hilarious to name his new nephew after himself. Unfortunately, he named him after the nickname he had received during an earlier war.

"Ahem." The Nagareboshi-nin cleared his throat.

Yogore turned his attention back to the man who stood in front of him. He stood nearly seven feet tall with decent girth, much of it clearly muscle. He wore intricate black plated armor with the crest of Nagareboshi's Kakkojimen clan, a clan of Doton specialists, emblazoned on it in green, and had a huge black sword strapped to his back. He had long wild flowing brown hair and his face was covered in a series of red markings. He wore a plated hitai-ate that wrapped around his entire head, but instead of the usual eight-pointed star of Nagareboshigakure no Sato it bore the kanji for turtle. He looked to be in his thirties, and his dark green eyes sparkled mischievously in the fading sunlight. Yogore recognized him instantly from a captured copy of another Hidden Village's Bingo Book.

"Kakkojimen Isamu, the Iron Turtle." He said, gritting his teeth. The so-named Isamu blinked.

"Huh, I wasn't aware I was famous enough to be known in Iwa." The black-armored ninja mused, seemingly ignoring Yogore for a moment.

"Damn it Isamu, I don't have time for delays. I have an important package to return to Iwagakure, and it can't wait. Move aside and let us pass. Tell the Ryuu that Iwagakure will pay the usual fee for using your country as a travel path."

Isamu tut-tutted Yogore, waggling a finger back and forth.

"I am afraid that the Ryuukage will not accept that this time. We received an official request for a mission and were dispatched to find you and retrieve your 'package'."

Yogore growled, both in anger that his mission was actively be interfered with by the Nagareboshi-nin and outrage that the scum had dared to refer to the leader of his pitiful little village with the title of Kage. As he prepared to speak he noticed that all three of his underlings were on heightened alert, having caught Isamu's indication that he wasn't alone.

"And just who gave you this mission request?" Yogore growled, his hands twitching, aching to perform a Doton jutsu and kill the interfering Isamu.

"From the Kazekage himself." Isamu replied, his voice becoming like steel. "Ren, Sora, Arashi. By the order of the Ryuukage himself you are authorized to use any means necessary to recover the target."

Yogore did not here their response so much as see it. At the remaining three cardinal direction geysers erupted from the desert; one of wind and sand to the south, one of water to the west, and one of fire to the east. When the geysers died down three Nagareboshi-nin were revealed standing there, their hands flashing through hand seals. Yogore and his squad barely had time to dodge as four elemental pillars sped through the desert and collided where he had been standing. He barely had time to reorient himself though before he found all four Nagareboshi-nin running towards him and his squad. Yogore prepared to square off with Isamu himself as Daiyama Ishi dropped the bundled kunoichi to the ground and brought his armored right arm up to block several kunai thrown by the Katon user. Meanwhile, his remaining two teammates, Daiyama Ken and Itsuwari Shin faced off with the Fuuton and Suiton users respectively.

Yogore was very quickly in a running battle with the powerful Isamu, who seemed to be able to channel his chakra into his iron-knuckles. He dodged and blocked the blows sent by the powerful Jounin for several seconds before he saw his opening and dove under the leaping Isamu's guard, slamming a pair of kunai through an opening in his armor and straight into his chest.

Or so he thought.

Isamu made a great show of clutching his chest and stumbling backword before he suddenly recovered and started laughing. Reaching up he pulled the two kunai out from where they had slid under his armor, revealing the tips to have been flattened and spread out, making them harmless.

"**Now it's my turn**." He said, a demonic gleam in his eye. Before Yogore could react Isamu bit one of his thumbs and spread the blood on his face, tracing the red lines. He then rapidly performed a series of hand seals and then slammed both palms on the ground.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Adamantoise." He said his voice cold as steel.

There was a puff of smoke and then the sun was blocked out. Yogore barely had time to look up before the foot of a massive armored turtle squashed him into the desert and unconsciousness. Isamu grinned darkly.

"Checkmate." He said quietly. He stood and then walked over to wear the bundled kunoichi had been dropped, picking her up and Shunshining onto the summoned turtle's head, setting her down carefully.

Meanwhile Yogore's three underlings were still occupied with their fights. Ishi was still unscathed, using his heavy armor to deflect all of his opponent's incoming weapons and using Doton: Doroku Gaeshi to defend against the numerous Katon techniques that he had used against him. Finally his opponent pulled back, seemingly breathing heavily as he analyzed his opponent. Ishi stared back, finally getting a good look at him.

Ishi's opponent looked to be in his late teens or early twenties, and wore light black armor over a fiery red and black jacket and black pants. He had a large sword like his sensei strapped to his back, wrapped in black cloth, and his armor bore a sigil of a dragon and a phoenix locked in eternal combat. His fiery spiky red hair waved in the wind and his eyes glimmered with dark humor from a face covered with gold and silver markings. Ishi noticed with a little surprise that the brat's eyes were heterochromatic. His right eye was a crimson red, but his left was a pure glacial blue.

Ishi grinned before speaking. "Give it up you little punk. You can't touch me, so why don't you just surrender. If you do, I promise not to hurt you…much." Ishi began laughing hysterically, blocking a trio of kunai thrown at him with his right arm. He was too busy laughing to notice that only two of the kunai had deflected away. The third had seemingly melted and flattened against his arm guard.

"I don't think so teme. In fact, you are so weak that I'm not even going to bother using _that_ against you." The Katon user said, smirking and closing his eyes, bringing his hands together and rapidly forming a complex set of seals as a black chakra began to manifest around him.

"Instead, I will defeat you with one blow." The Katon user said matter of factly

A vein threatened to explode from Ishi's forehead.

"Why you little punk-" He yelled as he rushed forward, "I'm going to KILL YOU!!"

The Katon user smirked and waited until the last second. Just as Ishi was about to bring his right fist down on him, glowing with chakra, the young man opened his eyes as he finished on the Ryuu seal and then spread his hands apart.

"Boom." He said as Ishi's right arm literally exploded in a spray of blood, spinning away from him. Ishi's sudden unbalanced state caused him to crash past the Katon user and leave a trench in the desert sand. Slowly he struggled to get back up as he bled out from his right shoulder.

As Ishi stood and turned he was suddenly struck by the Katon users killing intent and stuck in place, staring in fear at his eyes. The whites of the Katon users eyes had turned pitch black, his iris black and surrounded by a crimson ring. His pupil had turned a dark blue, and circling it were three blue triangles, the tips pointed inwards. As the Katon user approached Ishi finally broke free from the effect of the killing intent, raising his remaining arm and charging, prepared to crush the young man.

"I'LL KILL YOU FOR THIS YOU LITTLE SHIT!!" He screamed, his eyes wild from rage.

The Katon user watched Ishi's approach coldly, the triangles in his eyes spinning. He slipped under Ishi's blow and slammed his palms into Ishi's torso, right over his heart. Ishi only had enough time to notice the change in the young man's eyes before the young man spoke, his voice suddenly deeper and striking fear into Ishi's heart.

"**Kage: Kuukan Uzumaki."**

Daiyama Ishi spat up blood as a whole was literally ripped in his back by a spinning storm of chakra, a mixture of blue and black. As Ishi's bleeding corpse collapsed on top of the Katon user he dismissingly tossed him aside, his expression dark and cold, his mysterious eyes overlaid by a crimson and blue glow..

"Checkmate." He said.

Itsuwari Shin was really becoming bored with his opponent. The Suiton user had seemed like an interesting opponent at first, but all she did was to dodge around and toss kunai at him. They were far too easy to dodge, so he merely deflected them and let the poor kunoichi think she was actually giving him a fight.

The short kunoichi wore light armor, black like her sensei's, a black face mask that left only her eyes and part of her face visible, and had a positively enormous sword strapped to her back, wrapped in blue cloth. Her green hair flew in the winds that now covered the battlefield and her dark purple eyes glared as the agile Iwa-nin managed to deflect her latest set of kunai.

_Damn, I guess I'm going to have to actually use _that_ in order to defeat this bastard._ She thought, her hand inching towards the hilt of her sword.

Before the young shinobi was able to draw her ridiculously oversized blade though her opponent was knocked flying as Daiyama Ken was slammed into him by a visible wave of air. The kunoichi turned her head to see one of her teammates come flying towards the downed ninja on a spinning ball of air, his hands already performing the seals for one of his favorite jutsus. She shook her head as her teammate called out in a surprisingly cheery voice.

"Raiton: Mukankaku Ashi!"

A blue lightning bolt leapt from the blond ninja's hands and struck the two downed shinobi as they tried to stand. Their legs instantly gave way, and when they realized they couldn't feel or move them they began haranguing the two genin like school yard bullies caught in their own trap.

The kunoichi grinned as her teammate settled down beside her.

"Good work Arashi-kun. I'm impressed. You were able to completely disable their legs this time without affecting any other part of their bodies."

The kunoichi and Arashi both casually side stepped a pair of kunai thrown by the down and angry Iwa-nin, who were currently trying to crawl towards them.

"Well, I have been practicing Ren-chan. Hey, hey, will you go on a date with me as a reward?" Arashi asked, leaning in towards her with an idiotic grin on his face.

Arashi was promptly introduced to Mother Earth by Ren's first.

"Baka." She muttered, stepping forward towards the two downed ninja.

When she got close enough she performed a few rapid hand seals, retracted her arms, and then thrust them out straight at her opponents. A pair of small bones shot out from both palms and struck both down shinobi in the center of the foreheads. The electric discharge knocked both unconscious.

"Checkmate." Ren said smirking, a habit she had picked up from her sensei.

Both genin turned, intending to assist their teammates if need be. They were just in time to witness Daiyama Ishi's bloody demise at the hands of their third teammate.

"Meh." Ren spat. "Why does Sora always have to make such a mess when he plays with his prey?" She asked of no one in particular.

_**Because he and Fukushu are alike in many respects; they are hunters of the first degree, and sometimes they just need to have fun when the prey gives them no real challenge.**_

Ren sighed.

_Yeah, I guess you are right about that Fenrir._ She thought back. The demon's only reply was to send her the impression of a grinning opaque blue wolf grinning and laughing uproariously.

"Sora, Ren, Arashi, report." Kakkojimen Isamu's voice came over their radios. Reaching up and pressing a button on their headsets Arashi and Ren responded. "Ryoukai."

Ren watched as Sora took a deep breath and brought his hands together in a Ryuu seal. Recognizing the signs of him calming down after using _that_ technique she sighed and triggered her head set again.

"Isamu, Sora is in 'cool down.' We'll collect him and return to you. Ren out."

Ren turned to see Adamantoise towering over the desert, Isamu sitting on the giant turtle's head grinning and waving at them, and grinned. Team Turtle's first mission after getting out of the hospital had been a success.

* * *

AN: "Finally, after a long fight Its finished. The first part actually kept giving me trouble writing for several days. But when i started the last section it just sort of wrote itself. Thus I present to you the double stuffed Chapter 9 of "Rising Phoenix." I hope you all enjoy it and please remember to R&R.

Also, as you can see I figured out how to make the lines across the page, so I no longer have to write the AN in bold. Below I've listed both translations, as well as explanations of some of the new techniques demonstrated in the chapter. These descriptions will give spoilers and more in depth information about some characters, so you are warned. However, a few techniques I am leaving some information out about because I don't want to spoil one thing. I'd like to know whether people prefer this, or whether they would prefer truncated explanations of techniques when the full explanation would contain spoilers. Also, I'd like to know whether people would like me to simply apply all translations and techniques for a chapter at the end on a regular basis, rather than just the first time they are used. Feedback is always useful."

**Sora, Ren, and Arashi all nod their heads with their arms crossed**

**Translations**

Ben – Shit (n.)

Daiyama Ishi – Big Mountain Little Stone

Yogore Shiseiji – Dirt Bastard

Kiiroi Senkō – Yellow Flash

teki-nin – Enemy ninja

Iwagakure no Sato- Village Hidden in Stone

Sunagakure no Sato - Village Hidden in Sand

Hoshi no Kuni - Star Country

**Techniques - **This is a partial list both of new techniques and techniques I feel needed to have explanations enclosed.

**Doton: Doroku Gaeshi**--_Earth Release:Earth Shore Return_/ After striking the ground with his hands, a ninja creates a large wall of earth that rises into place as defense. The defense is not perfect though, since a hard or drilling impact can puncture the wall. Also since this technique only guards frontal attacks, the enemy can easily attack from the side or even from above. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Kage: Kuukan Uzumaki**--_Shadow: Void Vortex_/ This special technique is currently usable only by Kabatsu Sora, and is believed to be tied to his Uzugan. Channeling the chakra of the demon Fukushu, Sora forces his chakra and the demon's chakra to enter the opponents body through two tenketsu in their chest, and causes it to spiral in a rapid acceleration. This draws the opponents chakra to spiral as well and the spiral causes the chakra to blast outward in a spinning vortex, shredding the opponet from the inside out and causing a large spiraling vortex of black and blue chakra to appear before dissipating. This technique drains a lot of chakra, requires a large number of hand seals (53), and requires Sora to hit two specific tenketsu on his opponent. As such, it is not the most practical technique, better suited for use against slower over-confident opponents. (S-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)

**Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Adamantoise**–-_Summoning Technique: Adamantoise/_ Kakkojimen Isamu's special summoning contract to summon Adamantoise, the Indestructible. (C-class.) (Kakkojimen Isamu)

**Kussetsuhi: Nami**--_Bending Fire: Wave/_ This is one of the four Kussetsu: Nami techniques. It causes a contained wave of fire to flow over the ground towards a target. The wave is about three meters across and as many high. The fire is so intense that the ground below is often turned to glass, and even a near miss can cause burns. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Clan)

**Kussetsujimen: Soodai Fuusa**--_Bending Earth: Grand Blockade/_ This Earth Element technique draws on the earth to rise up, forming a massive wall that extends for a long distance in both directions. It requires to user to have an extremely high chakra capacity and level of skill. (A-Class Ninjutsu) (Kakkojimen Clan)

**Kussetsujimen: Kussetsukinzoku**--_Bending Earth: Bending Metal/_ This specialized technique is the basis for a subset of Kussetsujimen that involve manipulating metal. While such techniques are referred to as Kussetsukinzoku, they are technichally Kussetsujimen techniques. This technique infuses the users chakra in metal, allowing it to be manipulated for a time from a limited distance. All Kussetsukinzoku techniques are A or S-Class due to diffculty of use and chakra requirement. (A-Class Ninjutsu)

**Kussetsujimen: Nami--**_Bending Earth: Wave/_ This is one of the four Kussetsu: Nami techniques. It causes a contained wave of rock to flow over the ground towards a target. The wave is about three meters across and as many high. This technique also reaches into the ground, digging a trench and causing debris to scatter to either side. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Kakkojimen Clan)

**Kussetsukaze: Kuuki Sukuutaa**--_Bending Wind: Air Scooter/_ Forms a ball of swirling air beneath the user that hovers above the ground and allows them to move at swift speeds. (C-Class) (Gouzenkaze Clan)

**Kussetsukaze: Nami**--_Bending Wind: Wave/_ This is one of the four Kussetsu: Nami techniques. It causes a contained wave of wind to flow over the ground towards a target. The wave is about three meters across and as many high. The intense winds of this technique cause loose matter to fly up, causing the technique to look bigger than it really is, particularly in dusty or sandy environments, and a near miss can still blow the target away. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Gouzenkaze Clan)

**Kussetsukinzoku: Oshitsubu Wa**--_Bending Metal: Crushing Ring_/This technique manipulates a piece of metal previously infused using Kussetsujimen: Kussetsukinzoku, causing it to stick to a target and spread quickly to form a set of bands around their arm or leg. When the command is given, the bands contract, crushing their way through flesh and bone until the limb is destroyed and severed from the target. If the target notices they can remove the metal before it finishes forming the bands, but once its in place it is hard to remove unless the controller removes it, is knocked unconscious, or moves too far away. The distance it can be triggered at is much shorter than the distance that the bands remain charged with the users chakra, meaning a target can escape the technique by getting far enough away from the user. (A-Class Ninjutsu)

**Kussetsumizu: Nami**--_Bending Water: Wave/_ This is one of the four Kussetsu: Nami techniques. It causes a contained wave of water to flow over the ground towards a target. The wave is about three meters across and as many high. The water is under such high pressure that it digs a trench as it goes, and when the technique is released it explodes in all directions. If a miss is near enough(B-Class Ninjutsu) (Domonami Clan)

**Raikotsumyaku**--_Lightning Bone Pulse/_ Domonami Ren's unique Kekkei Genkai, seemingly similar to the Kekkei Genkai of Kaguya Kimimaro. Ren's bones have an extremely high metal content, and can convert chakra into a powerful bioelectric charge. She can project these bones from her body, regrowing them rapidly, able to replace broken and lost bones rapidly. (Kekkei Genkai) (Domonami Ren)

**Raiton: Mukankaku Ashi**--_Lightning Release: Dead Leg/_ This technique causes a targeted lightning strike that disables the nerves running to the targets legs, causing them to lose the use of their legs for an extended period. The technique causes merely a slight tingling at the point of contact. The strength and efficacy of this technique is tied both into the skill of the user to control the attack and the amount of chakra they can place in it. To little chakra and it won't do more than cause the target to feel tingly. Too much chakra or too little control will result either in the strike missing completely or it damaging the target. Raiton: Mukankaku Ashi was refined from another Raiton technique by the prankster Arashi Gouzenkaze for use in his pranking. (B-class Ninjutsu due to the control required to perform correctly.) (Gouzenkaze Arashi)

**Uzugan**--_Vortex Eye/_ The Uzugan is a Kekkei Genkai unique to Kabatsu Sora. It grantshim several abilities. The first is the ability to seemingly slow time down slightly, allowing him to minutely analyze an opponents movements. This combines with his photographic memory to allow him to learn or imitate techniques fairly quickly. The second ability grants him mastery over all elements, enhancing his skills with Elemental Release jutsu. The third ability allows him to focus on a target and see their chakra coils and tenketsu. It is this aspect that is one of the two limiters on the Kage: Kuukan Uzumaki that makes it a technique unique to Sora. It is very clear when Sora is using this, as his eyes transform. The whites of his eyes had turn pitch black, his iris turns black and it is surrounded by a crimson ring. His pupil turns a dark blue and is circled by three blue triangles, the tips pointed inwards. (Kekkei Genkai) (Kabatsu Sora)


	10. Chapter 10: New Jutsus

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 10: New Jutsus

The last week of training had come and gone. Three days before they were due to receive their assignment Kurenai was informing them that she was changing up their routines…and that she had presents for all three of them.

"Now, do all three of you remember when tested you to determine your elemental affinity?" Kurenai asked. She was sitting with her students in a booth at the Gilded Edge. As usual Naruto was pinned between Ino and Hinata, which earned a small smile from Kurenai.

_Those two. It's always the same thing with them. Either trying to out do the other, or hanging off of Naruto as unobtrusively as they can._ The genjutsu mistress shook her head ruefully.

"Hai sensei!" All three genin chimed together, identical grins plastered on their faces.

"Well, since we are going to be on a mission soon and thus will be unable to practice our regular routine I figured that it was time to give each of you some new jutsus to learn." Kurenai would have sworn before this day that you couldn't really be blinded by a smile. Today, she was sorely tempted to try to break whatever genjutsu had to have been cast on the faces of her three students.

"Calm down you three. Now, I need to explain a few things first before I give you these. First off, we will not be doing any more missions until the Hokage assigns us the courier mission. This means that this afternoon, tomorrow, and the next day will be split between taijutsu practice and all three of you practicing your jutsus. I will give you tips if you ask for them, but I fully expect all three of you to be able to learn these techniques without additional guidance from me. This is the reason I have had you working so hard on building your chakra as well as chakra control over the past three weeks." Kurenai emphasized this with a smile towards the two kunoichi. They had both mastered the tree climbing exercise in a single day, and had mastered water walking almost as quickly.

"Now, first we'll start with Ino. Because your affinity is water, just as mine is, I was able to select two fairly easy but supremely useful techniques for you to learn." Kurenai said, noting Ino smile when she mentioned her own affinity. Kurenai pulled a pair of scrolls out of her bag and handed them to Ino, who unrolled them both and read the technique names at the top.

"Kirigakure no Jutsu…Sensei, why is this technique named after another village?" Ino asked, looking up with a confused look on her face.

"Because Ino, that is a very old Suiton technique that predates the founding of the hidden villages. It is supposedly one of the oldest Suiton jutsus known. It is also one of the most versatile techniques. While it may only be a D-rank jutsu, the Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu is often used as a prelude to far more powerful Suiton jutsus, as it is able to saturate the air around you with water, making it much easier to draw on."

Ino nodded, paying rapt attention. Kurenai noted that both her teammates were grinning and paying close attention as well. Kurenai smiled and continued.

"Your second jutsu is a direct combat jutsu, and can be made much more powerful for much less chakra cost assuming you've cast Kirigakure already. The technique causes you to gather water in your mouth and spit out a large ball of water at your opponents. While this may not stop a kunai, It can stop Katon techniques of equivalent strength, as well as carrying a mighty punch when it impacts with a target." All three genin were silent for a moment before Naruto spoke up, making Kurenai shake her head and sigh.

"So basically it's a giant attack loogie of doom?" He asked, his eyes sparkling mischievously. Naruto was promptly introduced to Mr. Table by the fists of two annoyed kunoichi.

Kurenai ignored Naruto's question and turned to Hinata.

"Now, Hinata, it was harder than I expected to find appropriate jutsus for you to learn. Not only do Raiton techniques require a large chakra capacity, but they also require extremely fine control. And beyond even that, well, there just aren't that many Katon techniques generally known here in Konoha, not compared to Suiton or Katon for example. It's nearly as rare to have someone with a lightning affinity here as it is to find someone with a wind affinity. But, after a little digging in the Konoha archives, and some judicious bribing of a Jounin, I was able to gather two useful Raiton techniques that I believe you should have no trouble mastering. I would not use them too much, as your chakra capacity is still low, but your control is spectacular."

Hinata blushed at the praise, smiling and stealing a glance at the blond boy smiling next to her. Kurenai pulled out two scrolls and handed them to the blushing Hyuuga. As she unrolled the scrolls and the three genin saw the handwriting Naruto looked up at Kurenai, a twinkle in his eye.

"Sensei, was that Jounin who I think it was?" he asked with a grin.

"Yes Naruto, it was indeed Rin." Kurenai replied calmly. Naruto's response was a big grin.

"Now, the thing to remember about these techniques Hinata is that control is key." Kurenai continued. "If you aren't able to control them properly the lightning will go out of control and strike you instead. Especially given the large amounts of chakra required by these techniques, this can be quite dangerous if it happens. Now, the first of these techniques is the Raiton: Dengeki Haaku. I strongly advise you start with that one, as not only can Naruto assist you if you have difficulty…" Hinata blushed, and Kurenai noticed Ino growl slightly with jealousy, "…but it is much safer for you to practice than the other technique. The other technique, the Raiton: Raitama, I do not want you to even attempt until you have mastered the Dengeki Haaku. It will be easier to control the lightning into a sphere after you have mastered the Dengeki Haaku, and it should also require less chakra to perform. What the technique does that is so dangerous is create a sphere of lightning which the user hurls or thrusts at the target. The ball is made of pure lightning, and is thus attracted to the nearest object, usually the target. The Dengeki Haaku on the other hand simply charges your hand with the power of the Raiton. You can then use it to deliver a possibly disabling blow to the opponent. Some users claim to even be able to use it to strip away the most recent memories of a target, but that claim is currently unsubstantiated."

Kurenai noticed that Naruto looked just a little bit shifty at this last statement.

_I wonder…could he have already known that about the Dengeki Haaku?_ She thought before continuing, turning her focus to the loudest and most exuberant of her students.

"Now Naruto, because you already have a selection of attack jutsus and taijutsu at your disposal, the first of your techniques is a defensive jutsu rather than another attack jutsu." Kurenai said, pushing a scroll towards Naruto, whose face fell at the announcement that he was learning a defensive jutsu. "This technique is Fuuton: Kaze Tate. The technique works by forming a small tornado around the user, deflecting average kunai and shuriken. However, while it is listed as a low C-Rank because of this, its true power relies on the chakra capacity and control of its user. This is why I'm giving it to you to learn Naruto. In anyone else's hands it would simply be a defense against throw weapons. But in your hand, I suspect it may become a much more powerful defense. Once you get the basics down I'll help you practice by throwing kunai for you to deflect."

Naruto looked back up at his sensei smiling, a lock of red-tinted hair loose from his ponytail and dropping over his face. "That's okay sensei. I can use my bunshins to do it."

Kurenai sweatdropped. _That's right. I almost forgot that the gaki has a singular mastery of that technique. _Kurenai thought to herself.

"Ok Naruto, but your bunshins are still limited to your own capabilities. It's my hope that you will become proficient enough with this technique that it will require my assistance for you to improve it. If you can master its defensive capabilities against a Jounin, you will be able to draw the most out of this one technique." Kurenai paused as she noticed Naruto get a look in his eyes he only ever got when he was contemplating a new prank.

_Oh no. Please tell me I did not just give him an idea. I hope this one doesn't get me in trouble with the Hokage again._

"However," Kurenai quickly interjected, drawing Naruto's attention and hopefully diverting him from his train of thought, "To master the technique to that level should take a while. That is why you will also be learning this…" Kurenai pushed a second scroll towards Naruto. When he unrolled it both Hinata and Ino gasped, recognizing the technique.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu?" The three genin said at once; Naruto with simple curiosity, Hinata and Ino with surprise. Before Naruto could ask a question or Kurenai could speak Ino had risen in her seat and was leaning across the table, her hands pressed against the top of it to support herself. "How can you be teaching him that technique? Please don't turn him into a clone of Sasuke-kun Kurenai-sensei!!" She yelled at Kurenai, causing her to blink, and several other patrons to look over at them in annoyance.

"So I take it this is a technique that the Uchiha-teme is known for using?" Naruto whispered to Hinata, turning to face her. As Hinata nodded, turning to face Naruto as well, she noticed that while several patrons were giving Ino dirty looks, several more were glaring at Naruto.

_There they go again. Why do they hate him so much? He's the son of the Yondaime, I'd be expecting them to be pleased to see him not disgusted. _Hinata thought, vowing to get to the bottom of this mystery as soon as they returned from their mission.

Ino meanwhile had turned bright red as she realized not only what she had just done and said, but what she had just revealed to the object of her desire. Sitting back down at a stern look from Kurenai she mumbled an apology and folded her hands in her lap, eyes downcast. A whispered comment from Naruto had her blushing even deeper. "Well, I guess this means you DON'T want me becoming like the Uchiha-teme then?"

"Ino, please keep your outbursts under control when in situations like this. It will not reflect well upon Konoha if you have such outbursts during our mission." Kurenai said sternly.

"Naruto, this technique is a basic fire technique. While yes, it is true that Uchiha Sasuke is known for and understandably proud of this technique that is simply because mastering it was considered a rite of passage in the Uchiha clan before their destruction. It is not however some clan secret jutsu, and is actually known by a fair number of shinobi in the village."

Kurenai took a sip of her vodka. Given how much of a hassle her students could be sometimes, what with Ino's constant fluctuating between wanting to smash Naruto into the ground for being an idiot and her bouts of spending more time observing the boy than training, Hinata's drive and obsession with perfecting the Juken, even driving herself into the ground training on more than one occasion, and Naruto's tendency to pull pranks every other day, she needed a drink with meals.

Further discussion between the four shinobi was stalled as their food arrived, and three tired and hungry Genin dove into their food with gusto.

* * *

**Three Days Later…**

Sarutobi and Iruka sat in the Hokage's office, flanked by two ANBU guards and a courier of the Daimyou. They were waiting for two Genin teams to arrive at their assigned time to officially receive their mission to guard the courier. The door to the Hokage's office opened and everyone perked up, but it was just the Hokage's secretary Bukakkou Misa. Her wavy brown hair accented her shining hazel eyes as she happily skipped towards the Hokage's desk with her arms full of paperwork. Halfway to the Hokage's desk she tripped over her own feet and went sprawling with a cry of "Eep!" with the stack of papers she was carrying flying everywhere.

"Itai…" she muttered as she stood up and began trying to pick up all the papers. "Oh no oh no, this isn't good. This isn't good at all. And just when I had finally gotten them all organized too." She pouted as she finished gathering them up. Ignoring the snorts from the two ANBU and the disdainful look from the important looking man with the Daimyou's seal on his clothes she quickly set the papers on the Hokage's desk while bowing and repeating "Gomen nasai" over and over. She continued this behavior as she backed out of the room and closed the doors behind her. Sarutobi continued to smoke his pipe and let a small smile appear on his face. Misa may be klutzy, but she had a real knack for organizing and paper work and she made his job as Hokage infinitely easier.

Sighing, Sarutobi took the first sheet off the stack and began to read it. He promptly groaned, drawing a curious look from Iruka. In answer the Hokage handed the sheet to Iruka, who took it with trepidation at seeing the Hokage's face and began to read.

The paper was an official request from the village council to have Naruto's status as a shinobi of Konoha revoked. Apparently the bigots on the council and in the rest of Konoha felt threatened that the demon's jailor was a shinobi of Konoha, despite the fact that their revered Yondaime Hokage's last wish had been that Naruto be seen as a hero, not as the monster he contained within him. Iruka sighed and set the paper down, rubbing at his temples with one hand.

"They never change." Sarutobi said, drawing Iruka's attention again. "Every few months I receive a request from either the council or a coalition of clan heads, asking for Naruto's execution or exile. I'm just surprised it took them this long to send the latest. I'd assumed I'd have received it right after Naruto passed the exam."

Sarutobi wearily took the paper back and stamped it with one word. Denied. Just as he was putting it in the Outbox there came a knock at his door. Iruka saved him having to remove his pipe. "Come in."

The doors opened and in walked Yuhi Kurenai, leading Team 8. Iruka noticed that Hinata and Ino were both wearing their hitai-ate on their foreheads, unlike the last time he had encountered the duo eating breakfast together and chatting at Ichiraku. He also noticed that Naruto had ditched his usual sunglasses and instead had his hitai-ate strapped to his forehead over a black head wrap, obscuring most of his bright blond hair. Instead he had a fancier pair of sunglasses dangling around his neck, thin enough that they clearly didn't interfere with his hitai-ate when he wore them together. Clearly the three were taking their first C-Rank mission with seriousness.

"How are things, Ojii-san?" Naruto called out, grinning happily.

Ok. Mostly serious.

Sarutobi sighed. He didn't get a chance to respond as someone else knocked at the halfway open doors before parting them to enter. Gekko Hayate entered, his sword strapped firmly to his back and several large scrolls strapped to his lower back. He was followed swiftly by his three genin, who looked decidedly different from the last time Iruka had seen any of them. From what he knew Hayate had been training them intensely for most of the past month, and they had barely done any D-Rank missions.

First into the room was Abarai Renji. His dark red hair was tied up behind his head, and he had apparently gotten a tattoo on his face since his graduation from the Academy. He wore a black outfit seemingly more suited for one of the Daimyou's samurai, but from the line of kunai dangling from his right hip he was properly equipped. He had a pack strapped to his back, a pair of expensive sunglasses that must have cost every penny he'd made from the few missions they'd done, and had a simple katana strapped to his left hip. He wore his hitai-ate strapped to his upper right arm. He grinned arrogantly at the members of Team 8 as he took a position beside his sensei, and Iruka caught him giving Naruto a nod, placing his hands to his own sunglasses as he did so.

_I guess they must have bought the glasses from the same place then._ Iruka thought.

Abarai was followed by the extremely short Kuchiki Rukia, who was dragging a complaining Kurosaki Ichigo behind him. Rukia's brown hair was loose, bound only by the Hitai-ate around her forehead, and she had a sword strapped to her left hip, and a smaller pack on her back. As Kurosaki stood Iruka noticed that despite his complaining, something had changed in the boy. He had had the lowest scores at the Academy, but now as he stood before the Hokage he seemed to instantly turn serious. He had a red knotted cord wrapped from his right shoulder down past his left hip, and instead had a much larger sword strapped to his back. He was wearing the same outfit as his teammates, but he also had his hands and forearms wrapped in bandages. Like Renji he had his hitai-ate wrapped around an arm, but in his case it was his left arm.

The Daimyou's courier made a coughing sound, effectively ending Iruka and Sarutobi's musings and analysis.

"Very well, now that you are all here I can explain your mission. You have all been told that you are being assigned a C-Rank mission escorting a courier of the Daimyou. What you haven't been told is that this is not a normal communiqué run." Sarutobi began, his hands crossed in front of him on his desk.

"What the courier is carrying is a formal request by the Daimyou for the Water Country's Daimyou daughter's hand in marriage for his son. There are many parties who would not like to see such a marriage occur, as it would form ties between the Water and Fire Countries, and by extension between Konohagakure and Kirigakure."

Hinata took a step forward surprising both her teammates and her sensei.

"Hokage-sama." She said, bowing. "Pardon my impertinence, but if this is such a sensitive matter, why are two genin squads being sent when this clearly should call for multiple Jounin squads to guard?"

Sarutobi chuckled. Leave it to the Hyuuga girl to see the 'underneath the underneath.'

"That is a very astute assessment Hinata-san. However, it is our hope that by bundling the formal request with the usual monthly communiqué and by not increasing it's defense, that you will avoid any incidents. We do not know how much the possible opponents of this plan really know, so we hope to sneak in under their radar. However, due to this matter, I have selected the two teams that I most think will be able to accomplish this mission. Kurenai-san, Hayate-san. Both of you have been stressing chakra control, particularly water walking and tree climbing, in your training. You are the only ones of the newest genin squads to do so, and all the older squads are currently assigned to other duties or would be too conspicuous to reassign to this duty."

The Hokage took a puff on his pipe.

"Also, the specific abilities of your two teams make you ideally suited to deal with a possible ambush." Sarutobi paused as he noticed the two teams looking at each other, trying to figure out what the other's abilities were just from looking at them. He noticed that Kurenai and Hayate both smirked, knowing precisely which abilities of their respective teams were being referred to.

Sarutobi took a puff on his pipe as Iruka spoke up, continuing the explanation. "Kurenai-san is an expert with genjutsu, both recognizing, using, and breaking it. Her team consists of a Hyuuga, capable of both seeing through genjutsu and providing accurate warning of where an ambush is coming from as well as being able to use her Juken to disable attackers for interrogation, a Yamanaka who I hear is becoming quite skilled with some of her family's techniques, which will be of much aid both in disabling an opponent, as well as interrogating them if they are captured alive, and the Yondaime's heir, who appears to have received his mother's expertise with ninjutsu, and who I am lead to believe has mastered Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu as well as five different forms of taijutsu."

Iruka paused for a moment. He noticed Renji sizing Naruto up. _He is probably debating whether he is worth having a spar with or not. Better be careful Renji. Naruto did take Mizuki down on his own after all._

"And Hayate-san is a prodigy, and an expert swordsman. In the event that any attackers turn out to be members of the Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shū, the Seven Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist. As they are all powerful swordsmen, as their name implies, Hayate and his pupils will be best prepared to handle them. Also, Abari Renji has shown a penchant for Ninjutsu similar to Naruto's, and I have been informed that despite his low scores, that Ichigo's skills with his sword have improved with leaps and bounds since he first started learning to use it. On top of that, he has above-average taijutsu. Given what we know of Mizuki's actions during the exam, and discrepancies between his scores and the skills he has shown when push comes to shove during training, we suspect that Mizuki may have been interfering with Ichigo's exam as well, perhaps in an attempt to create a pawn to steal the Forbidden Scroll."

The courier coughed again, clearly annoyed with being held up any longer than he had to be. He was clearly an ex-ninja, probably one who had never made it beyond genin rank Kurenai figured, judging by what she could sense of his chakra flow, but still enough of one that they wouldn't have to walk slowly to allow a civilian to keep up.

Iruka shuffled a few papers and handed them to Kurenai who had stepped forward. Sarutobi took over from Iruka after Kurenai had the papers.

"So, Teams 8 and 11. You are officially assigned as escorts to the Daimyou's regular messenger to the Daimyou of the Water Country. You will escort him there to deliver the regular communiqué, and you will escort him back with the Daimyou's response. You are to deal with any interference with any force necessary. While capturing and interrogating any who interfere with your duty is considered best, do not hesitate to kill your enemy if they cannot quickly be brought down."

The Hokage took a puff on his pipe as both Kurenai and Hayate acknowledged their official assignment. The courier smirked and stepped away from the wall where he had been leaning to lead the way out of the room.

"Come on then. The sooner we leave the sooner we can get this job done and I can be out of the presence of-"

The idiot didn't get a chance to finish his comment as he suddenly found himself choking on a piece of dango. As Hinata rushed to clear his throat Sarutobi, who had watched the dango fly out and bounce off the edge of his door before slamming into the courier's mouth, noticed Naruto carefully slipping a package of dango back inside his jacket. Sarutobi had no illusions that the boy had merely been being nice, trying to save the courier from making a fatal mistake.A surprisingly frank discussion with the young Namikaze heir a few months back had revealed that when the time came, he fully intended to inform the entire village of what he carried inside him, despite the old man's advice against it. Since he interfered with someone almost revealing the fact to his teammate's meant that Naruto wasn't ready for them to know.

At least, not yet.

* * *

AN: New chapter is finally done. Well, first off, I didn't name the courier as he won't be around long enough to justify giving him one. If you must, just call him Seirai no Baka. (Congenital Idiot) This section of the story is building both to begin showcasing their skills, as well as get the action moving along. Needless to say, there are going to be some fierce battles coming up, revelations of secrets kept from teammates, and the reveal of a new jutsu. I hope you all liked this chapter, and I apologize if it was kind of slow. I swear the next chapter will be faster. And that everyone's favorite blond prankster will get to bash face on some Kiri-nin. Next time on "Phoenix Rising," Chapter 11: The Journey to Kiri Begins. Please remember to read and review.

**Team 11 stand behind him, hands dangerously near their hilts.**

Cuz if you don't, these guys will know. winks

**Translation**

Kiri no Shinobigatana Nananin Shū - Seven Shinobi Swordsmen of the Mist

Seirai no Baka – Congenital Idiot

**Techniques - **This is a partial list both of new techniques and techniques I feel needed to have explanations enclosed.

**Fuuton: Kaze Tate**--_Wind Release: Wind Shield_/ This jutsu creates a small tornado like wind around the user. In general this jutsu is only able to deflect the average kunai and shuriken and has several other minor uses. But the true power of this defensive jutsu lies in the amount of chakra used in it, the more chakra used means the stronger the shielding action will become. There is no real definite answer as to just how powerful this jutsu could become, but it could most definitely blow away an entire army if used correctly. (low C-Class Ninjutsu) (Created by Tellemicus Sundance)

**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu**--_Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique/_ Utilizing a high amount of chakra, the user creates a large ball of flame and spits it out of their mouth. When performed incorrectly it can burn a shinobi from the inside out if they are not careful. (C-Rank)

**Raiton: Dengeki Haaku**--_Lightning Release: Shocking Grasp/_ The user channels their chakra into their right hand, building up an electric charge. This charge is then released upon contact with an opponent. As demonstrated by Uzumaki Naruto, releasing the charge through five specific pressure points on the forehead can knock a target unconscious. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Raiton: Raitama**--­_Lightning Release: Lightning Ball/_ This technique causes the user to gather a sphere of lightning energy in their hand. This sphere can be tossed towards an enemy, and will be drawn towards, making it difficult to dodge. The technique will however go for the nearest object, so a thrown kunai or dodging behind an object can distract the ball of lightning away from the intended target. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu**--_Water Release: Hidden in the Mist Technique/_ This technique causes the air around the user to become extremely saturated with water, forming a thick fog. This technique is a simple D-rank jutsu that is often used in preparation of much higher level Suiton jutsus. On top of making it harder for an enemy to see them, the saturation of the air makes it easier to perform Suiton jutsus, particularly if the user is not near a body of water. (D-Class)

**Suiton: Teppoudama** --_Water Release: Gunshot/ _A large ball of water is fired from the user's mouth. The strength of this technique is scaled relative to the user's size and chakra capacity. (C-Class Ninjutsu)


	11. Chapter 11: The Journey to Kiri Begins

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 11: The Journey to Kiri Begins

Teams 8 and 11 had left Konoha behind several hours before, and already they were getting bored of the mission. It was nothing but endless walking, while having to tolerate snide remarks from the courier, the blatant passes he was making at Kurenai and the three genin kunoichi, and the disgusted glares he sent in Naruto's direction anytime he was reminded of his presence. Kurenai had noticed this, and was afraid she would end up having to kill the man to uphold one of the Third Hokage's laws; the presence of the Kyuubi within Naruto could not be revealed to anyone unaware of it except by Naruto himself, on pain of death. Hinata had noticed this as well, recognizing the look in his eyes as the same look she often saw on villagers and even a fair number of shinobi whenever Naruto was around. Ino finally noticed the looks when she was glaring directly at the man after he made a particularly lewd pass at her (compared to his previous attempts) and saw him glare at Naruto when he spoke up to defend Ino's honor. Ino would have blushed if she hadn't been completely pissed at this man, and confused by why he seemed to show so much hatred towards Naruto.

_I swear, if that pervert makes one more pass at me I'm going to goad him into revealing Naruto's secret just so I'll have an excuse to bury a kunai in his face._ Kurenai darkly mused to herself. She couldn't stand perverts, as she had to deal with far too many of them on a regular basis herself. Anko was just the tip of the iceberg. She was pulled out of her musings as she noticed someone attempting to put her under a subtle area-effect genjutsu.

"Hinata, Byakugan." She said softly, stopping dead in her tracks. Hinata rapidly triggered her Byakugan, using it to see through the genjutsu and find their targets while the rest of Teams 8 and Team 11 stopped and formed a defensive ring.

"Sensei, I detect four bunshins approaching from the east. No sign of their creators." Hinata replied Naruto didn't have to be told what to do next by his sensei. Two weeks earlier he and his teammates had worked out a strategy for various scenarios of being caught in a genjutsu. Since Hinata could not find any targets within range of Ino's trademark Shintenshin they were going with plan B. Naruto performed a series of hand seals, concentrating his chakra at his center.

"Chakra Myatsu: Genjutsu Kai!" Naruto exclaimed, releasing the pent up chakra. A visible wave of energy pulsed out, flowing over the arrayed ninja and the nearby terrain for over a hundred meters in every direction. The revealed bunshins looked shocked, shortly before being turned back into water by several carefully struck blows by the members of Team 11. Ichigo was foolishly remarking that the enemy must be weaklings, but Kurenai and Hayate were looking thoughtful.

_If there is no sign of the enemy nearby, then these must have been scouts, meant to find us and evaluate our combat effectiveness. I didn't recognize any of them though, so I doubt it's any of the Seven Swordsmen. But still, we better stay on our guard._ Hayate thought as he returned his sword to its sheath. He looked at Kurenai and she nodded. He quietly performed a few quick hand seals and slipped away from the group, leaving a bunshin behind.

"Ok every one, I want you all on constant alert. Hinata, keep your Byakugan on. The real ambush will likely come before too long. Ino, Renji, Naruto. I want you three to stick close to the courier and be prepared to defend him if we are attacked. Hinata, you'll take point with me. Ichigo and Rukia, you two cover our flanks. Hayate, you bring up the rear." Hayate's bunshin nodded understanding, taking its position. "Alright everyone, move out. This isn't training anymore. This is the real deal. If you get injured out here, you might not get back up again."

Kurenai leapt forward, followed swiftly by the rest of the group. The courier looked nervous as he was closely guarded by the three genin, but whether it was from fear that they might be attacked again or because Naruto was at his back would never be known.

About an hour later there was still no sign of the enemy. Then they reached a stream. Now, it wasn't very impressive as far as streams went. Barely more than a trickle really, but the size of its bed and the sturdy bridge over it indicated that during the rainy months it must really get big. As the group was crossing the bridge at a crisp pace Hinata's eyes widened. But before she could shout out a warning a pillar of water had struck up through the bridge, sending her flying and barely missing Kurenai as she dodged. Everyone else froze. That was mistake number one. Before they could react both Ichigo and Rukia had kunai held to their necks by two masked Kiri-nin. A third Kiri-nin, a kunoichi, stood behind Naruto, striking at the small of his back with a large katana. The fourth was nowhere to be seen.

Moving faster than Kurenai or his teammates had ever scene Naruto twisted, seeming to flow around the sword as he dodged it and spun, kicking the over-extended Kiri-kunoichi in the gut with a rotating kick as he went into a hand stand. Ino, unable to get a clear line of sight on the Kiri-kunoichi, instead focused on the Kiri-nin holding the kunai to Rukia's throat. She had a better view of him, and a better chance of getting an opening to use the Shintenshin. Renji on the other hand stepped past Naruto, drawing his own sword and holding it one handed, challenging the Kiri-kunoichi to try attacking again.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto's voice rang out, and suddenly the courier was surrounded by a double ring of twenty copies of Naruto, all with replicas of the same strange three-pronged kunai that had somehow found their way into Naruto's hands.

Out of the corner of his eye Naruto noticed Hinata laying unconscious at the far end of the bridge, and noticed that Kurenai seemed to be involved in a dodging battle with the fourth Kiri-nin, who was clearly a Jounin from his clothing and how well he fought. The Hayate bunshin on the other hand was staring down the Kiri-nin pressing a kunai to Ichigo's throat.

"Stay back Konoha." The man spat. "Our mission is to end the life of this courier and take his documentation. If you step aside you and your students will live." The man's voice was gravely, but carried an undertone of fear that Naruto heard. Of course, his real level of fear was belied to Naruto's suddenly enhanced senses. Naruto's eyes had grown slightly slitted and his canines had become a tiny bit more pronounced, and his stance had him much closer to the ground, ready to leap.

Hayate coughed, the momentary sign of weakness drawing all the Kiri-nin's focus…and costing him his life. When the man released the pressure of his kunai against Ichigo's neck by a tiny fraction, the real Hayate appeared behind him and severed the arm holding the kunai, allowing Ichigo to break free moments before Hayate skewered the Kiri-nin upon his sword. Renji was meanwhile engaged in a duel with the Kiri-kunoichi, who he was hard pressed to keep up with.

"Shintenshin no Jutsu." Ino's voice rang out. Suddenly, the fourth Kiri-nin's movements ceased as Ino's body slumped to the ground, instantly surrounded by several of Naruto's bunshin.. Instead his face became covered with a glowing grin. "Only two left Kurenai-sensei. We can interrogate this one once the others are dead."

Naruto didn't waste anytime, as the sudden change in demeanor in his commander caused the Kiri-nin threatening Rukia to let his focus drift from her for one brief second. That was all the time in the world to Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto. Naruto moved swiftly and silently across the bridge, striking with his two kunai while he leapt and spun to bring a kick in towards his opponent. With the first kunai he sliced straight through the kunai the man was holding, the part against Rukia's neck falling away. The second he tossed into the man's left foot, its momentum driving it through his foot and attaching him to the bridge. The man was stuck screaming in this position when a swift boot to the head dropped him into merciful unconsciousness.

Meanwhile Renji hadn't been fairing as well against the Kiri-kunoichi. He had received several shallow cuts on his arms, and had nearly lost the use of his left arm when his opponent performed a sneaky inside cross-slash that nearly severed the tendons in his shoulder. As Renji rolled away from his attacker's latest blow he heard a trio of jutsus called out; one in a semi-familiar voice, one in a shaky female voice, and one in a completely unfamiliar masculine voice. "Raiton: Raitama!" "Suiton: Teppoudama!" Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!"

Three elemental projectiles shot over his head as he rolled out of the way. The Teppoudama struck first, nearly knocking the Kiri-kunoichi off her feet and soaking her with water. The Raitama struck next, the kunoichi convulsing as the lightning arced and flowed around and through her. While she was still convulsing the Goukakyuu slammed into her, evaporating the water as steam, which condensed a second later, adding to the agony of the burns she was already receiving from the fireball itself. The kunoichi was already unconscious before her sword even hit the ground.

An hour later Kurenai and Hayate had gathered all the information they needed from the three captured shinobi. They had evidently been hired by a high-ranking lord in the Water Country who desired the hand of the Water Daimyou's daughter in marriage for himself. Rather than risk the Water Daimyou's wrath for such interference, he had instead quietly hired a group of Kiri-nin to intercept and stop what appeared to be nothing more than a regular courier mission. Too bad for him the Kiri-nin were more than willing to give up the information once they learned that they had been duped by a civilian into being part of an incident that could have started another war. Kurenai and Hinata had bandaged the worst of the Kiri-kunoichi's burns, as well as the puncture wound in the foot of one of the Kiri-nin. Team 8 left the three ninja securely tied and stuck under a sleep-compulsion a bit off from the road. If all went well, they would reach the Water Lord's court and be on their way back to Konoha before the compulsion wore off.

Ino and Hinata, who were a little queasy after seeing Hayate kill one of the attackers, were silently thankful that they hadn't had to kill or witness another kill the remaining Kiri-nin. Rukia had stared at the dead shinobi with no trace of emotion, while Renji had sneered and Ichigo had seemingly ignored it. Naruto was the only one who seemed to be completely unphased. He was back to normal, and thankful that none of the others had seen what happened to him when he took out the third enemy. Unfortunately, the courier HAD seen what had happened to him. The man had been extremely jumpy during the interrogation, doing his best to avoid Naruto, but now as the two teams arranged themselves into a defensive formation so that they could continue he finally spoke up.

"Enough is enough. Kurenai-san, I demand that someone other than the d-" The courier had his comment interrupted by a solid blow to the lower gut, doubling him over. Naruto lent in close to him and spoke just barely loud enough to be heard.

"I swear, I will not hesitate in fulfilling the sentence for breaking _that_ law of the Hokage's. I'm sure you know the one of which I am speaking. If you so much as _breath_ another word of that, I swear my sensei won't even have the chance to execute you. I'll behead you myself,got it?" Naruto's voice had deepened to almost a growl. The courier sputtered out an affirmative and then collapsed to the ground when Naruto removed his fist and stepped back.

"Naruto!" Ino cried out, her fist introducing the blond-genin to Mother Earth again. "Why the hell did you do that baka!? We're supposed to be guarding him, not beating him up! What the hell is wrong with you!?" Naruto rubbed the spot on his head where Ino had hit him as he stood back up. Looking at her with eyes almost devoid of emotion he spoke, his voice cold and dark. "What I was doing was saving the teme from violating one of the Hokage's laws, one for which the penalty is immediate imprisonment or execution." Naruto spat. "As we are in the field and on a mission, execution would be the only feasible option." Naruto dusted himself off and then turned and walked towards Hinata and Kurenai.

"Sensei, do you mind if I take point with Hinata? I don't think I can be around the courier anymore. I might kill him if he even looks at me the wrong way." Hinata and Ino stared at Naruto, completely shocked by the sudden change that had come over him. It was almost like he had become a whole nother person. The members of Team 11 merely watched silently, with various degrees of interest and amusement.

As the group set off Hinata moved close to Naruto, whispering just loud enough for him to hear. "I don't know what this law of the Hokage's you mentioned is, but I'm certain it has to do with you somehow. I've seen how they look at you, how they all look at you. The only people who haven't looked at you like you were utter shit are your parents, a small number of the adults, and people our age or younger. I don't know what it is, but I swear, I will stand by you know matter what. You and I are teammates, and more than that, friends." Hinata finished and moved back to her position as the two teams continued their way to the port city of Akamizu, where they were due to catch a boat to the Water Country. Naruto stared ahead coldly, contemplating all that had happened.

_I very nearly removed that man's head Kyuubi. And I would have enjoyed it too. I'm certain that if it had been Hinata or Ino he was threatening, that there wouldn't have been enough left of him to identify as human. And just now, when he almost revealed my secret, I felt the urge to kill him, but I felt no emotion. I'm worried._ Naruto thought, his nerves frayed as he battled with the feelings he was finally feeling about the battle.

_**It's the bloodlust kid. One of the changes from what I've been doing to you causes your body to release high concentrations of a biological compound into your system when your fight or flight response is aggravated. It turns you into a calm happy logical killer, but strong emotion causes your body to break it down faster, clearing it from your system. Once the changes are complete you'll be able to learn to control how much you let come out when you use the gland. Just hold out until then Kit. I promise it will get easier.**_ Kyuubi replied to Naruto's thoughts, trying to offer a comforting hand so to speak_**.**_

_I sure hope you're right Kyuubi._

* * *

**Two Days Later, Western Water Country**

The squad of Konoha shinobi was thankfully unmolested over the next two days. They reached the port city of Akamizu easily enough, catching the regular boat to the Water Country. Once on board the two teams alternated guard duty, recovering from two days of hard travel and various minor injuries incurred during the ambush. Renji was aloud to sit out this duty while a salve Hinata had used on his shoulder injury did its work of speeding up the healing. Renji complained about having to sit around, but after Hayate threatened to make him run laps around Konoha he did so, if a bit grumpily.

Hinata's Byakugan allowed her a much better lookout view, so Ino took some time to work on her other jutsu after Kurenai had a talk with her about why she had learned the Teppoudama before Kirigakure. Ino had complained about feeling like she was useless since she had so few attack jutsus compared to her teammates. Naruto and Hinata didn't know anymore about the conversation than that, but whatever had been said between Ino and Kurenai seemed to have improved Ino's mood

When the boat finally reached the water country they disembarked much restored. Because they were now in what could truly be considered hostile territory they were all very much on their guard. Kurenai's team took the outer defensive ring, with Naruto taking point, Hinata trailing, and Kurenai and Ino off to either side. Meanwhile Hayate and his team remained close to the courier, keeping him guarded. All four shinobi had their swords drawn and prepped to defend against any attack. They didn't have long to wait.

Barely an hour into their renewed journey to the capitol of the Water Country, as they were crossing a clearing, the air around them suddenly became so foggy that the genin could barely see one another. Kurenai and Hayate stopped their team swiftly, closing ranks and trying to sense the opponent. Hinata was using her Byakugan, while Ino muttered softly to herself. "So this is how Kirigakure can be utilized?"

Naruto spoke softly, crouched and glaring at the mist. "Sensei, is Kirigakure maintained by a chakra flow?"

Kurenai frowned. _What are you thinking Naruto...?_

"No. Once the fog is formed there is no need to maintain a chakra link."

"Damn. I feel so useless. I can't see a damn thing in this fog." Naruto muttered, drawing two of his specialized kunai.

"And soon you won't see anything ever again." A deep voice echoed out of the mist, followed by the sound of four people laughing. The courier crouched, covering his head, while the rest of his escort tightened their grips on their weapons.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!" suddenly rang out from four directions. The eight Konoha shinobi leapt away, attempting to dodge the attacks, Hayate dragging the courier by his collar. Renji and Rukia followed him, their backs to their sensei as they used their swords to deflect a brace of thrown kunai, using a rapid-spinning maneuver. Naruto landed near Ino and the two genin promptly moved back to back, scanning the area around them for the enemy. Kurenai rolled as she landed, coming up behind Hinata and scanning, sensing for the enemy.

"Come on out and face me you cowards!! I'll take all of you down!!" Ichigo's voice rang out, his large sword held ready before him.

"Ino. I have an idea. I want you to be ready to use the Shintenshin. If this works I'll be able to clear this fog out and give us a clear view." Naruto spoke softly so his teammate could hear him. Letting his kunai drop, dangling from his wrists, he performed a few quick hand seals and spoke quietly. "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. Henge." Around Naruto six of his special kunai appeared. He caught four looped around one arm and grab the other two in his hands. Still holding the kunai he performed a series of hand seals, focusing his chakra.

"Chakra Myatsu: Genjutsu Kai!" Naruto's voice rang in Kurenai's ear as a wave of pure chakra pulsed outward from the Naruto. Surprisingly, the chakra dragged the fog with it, thinning it out substantially. This brought four grinning Kiri-nin all bearing oversized swords into view.

"My my, well that wasn't very smart of you. We were just going to kill the little rat and take his message, but now that you've seen us I guess you leave us no choice but to kill you. And maybe have some fun with the pretty one first." The tallest of the group, who appeared to be their leader, said, looking straight at Ino. Ino promptly passed out.

"Well, you heard the boss boys. We've got to kill them all. Too bad really, because these are some mighty fine kunoichi too." A second man grinned, a scar running from his right cheek to his left temple giving him a very unique appearance. Kurenai glared back, kunai drawn and ready to throw.

Mr Scar was only answered by the sound of one of his teammates gurgling blood. The fourth member of their team was standing with his sword buried through the man's chest, while the man looked down impotently at the large wedge of steel sticking out in his view, covered in his own blood. The distraction was enough for the rest of the team to launch into battle. Hinata and Kurenai moved in on the leader, but were kept back by his sword. The other surviving swordsman ran straight towards his seemingly traitorous teammate. As his teammate attempted to remove his sword from the dead man Naruto saw his eyes widen. Thinking fast Naruto threw four of his kunai towards the charging Kiri-nin. As they impacted the sword they dropped the Henge, their momentum driving the shinobi's sword to the side. Ino stirred at his feet as the third Kiri-nin shook his head and stared down at his dead teammate in horror for a moment before turning to glare daggers at Naruto and Ino.

"Come on! Fight me!" Ichigo cried out as he charged the Kiri-nin, distracting him with his large sword. But even Ino could tell that Ichigo was outclassed. The second Kiri-nin ignored Ichigo, Ino, and Naruto and ran straight towards the group guarding the courier, his hands moving rapidly through a series of hand seals. A sudden laughing drew her attention, revealing both Kurenai and Hinata trapped inside floating balls of water. "Oh shit! Naruto, he trapped Sensei and Hinata!" Ino yelled out, her hands drawing a pair of kunai again.

Naruto spun, his eyes darkening as he saw the Jounin Kiri-nin with Hinata and Kurenai imprisoned and slowly suffocating inside two spheres of water. Naruto's ability to control his bloodlust vanished as two mizu bunshins of the Jounin approached, preparing to slice into the prisons and kills his sensei and his friend.

_**Careful Kit! If you go to far under even I won't be able to keep you balanced. You'll be reacting purely on instinct.**_ Kyuubi's voice rumbled in Naruto's head, worried.

"Hinata!!" Naruto's voice rang out, deepening as the cry continued. The two mizu bunshin were dispelled by a pair of kunai which promptly vanished in a puff of smoke, replaced by a pair of Naruto's Kage Bunshin.

"Sen'eijashu!!" They cried out as a pair of snakes leapt from the arms of their jackets, wrapping around the Jounin, locking him in place.

"**You dare threaten those who are important to me? For that you will die." **Naruto spoke calmly, his voice cold and devoid of emotion. Suddenly a wave of red chakra began to swirl around him, like a living flame, and killer intent began to roll off of him in waves, practically visible to those watching.. The whisker marks on Naruto's face deepened, he began to grow claws, and his eyes grew red and slitted. He crouched, growling gutturally like an animal, his eyes suddenly shining with a fire of rage and hatred.

_Oh god! Is the seal breaking? No, its holding, so what in the name of the six elements is happening!?_ Kurenai thought, worried about what was happening to Naruto.

"**I will kill you for even daring to THINK IT!!"** Naruto screamed before launching forward, propelled by chakra emitted from his hands and feet as the aura around him began to take on the form of a fox head. The Jounin had two choices. Release his prisoners and escape the attack, or be killed by a psycho Konoha genin.

_No way in hell am I letting this runt take me down!_ He thought as he released the water prisons and using a Kawarimi to escape. The log he left in his place was disintegrated by Naruto's claw swipes. Hinata, sputtering though she was as she hit the ground, stared at Naruto in shock, and with a little bit of fear. Killing intent was rolling off him in waves. Ino stared at him as well.

_Is…is this the real Naruto? Have we just been seeing a mask all this time? But what the hell is this?_ Ino thought, entirely focused on the glowing red figure of her teammate and crush standing before her.

Naruto howled to the sky. "**I am Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto. Any who dare threaten my precious people will be slain.**" Naruto hunkered down into a crouch, turning to face where six mizu bunshin were charging towards him with their swords raised. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Hayate and his team were being overpowered by another batch of bunshin. As the six bunshin attempted to strike him with their swords Naruto seemed to momentarily disappear as he used chakra to propel himself to the side. The six bunshin were dispatched when Naruto's two remaining Kage Bunshin slammed them with a pair of Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsus. Naruto merely growled as he turned to face a wooded section at the edge of the clearing, sniffing before grinning ferally.

"**I can smell you, teme. Come out and fight. I promise I'll make your death as swift as possible.**" Hinata activated her Byakugan and realized Naruto was staring right at the hiding shinobi. The Jounin didn't move, but neither did Naruto. Then a cry of pain from behind her drew Ino's attention. Ichigo was cutching his right arm as it hung limply at his side. Ino could see that his opponent's blade was dripping blood as he charged at Ichigo for another strike. Thinking fast she grabbed a kunai that Naruto had dropped and used a Kawarimi to switch places with a Ichigo, at the last second, leaping forward under the Kiri-nin's guard and burying the kunai in his face. Ino was too full of adrenaline for what she had just done to fully register, but a second later as the dead Kiri-nin collapsed it finally hit and she dropped to her knees, vomiting on the ground.

Kurenai saw Ichigo collapse to the ground as soon as he realized his opponent was dead. _Poor kid must have been running on pure will._ She thought to herself as she began to weave a genjutsu, hoping to catch the shinobi attacking the courier. Suddenly she saw Hinata dash forward towards the enemy. She dodged under first one sword blow, then another, but she kept on going. Suddenly Kurenai watched as she struck out with two blows towards the neck of one of the bunshins. Suddenly all the bunshins except that one vanished as their creator lost consciousness. The Kiri-nin collapsed, his sword mere inches away from the face of the cringing sweating crying courier. Kurenai tallied her mental count as she turned to scan for the Jounin.

_Three down, one to go. No casualties yet. But what is going on with Naruto!? I sense the Kyuubi, but the seal is intact._

"Sensei. The Jounin is retreating." Hinata reported as she walked up beside her sensei, her Byakugan focused on the retreating figure. Kurenai, Naruto, and her remained tense and focused until they were sure the threat had moved out of the immediate vicinity. Hinata nearly collapsed when she finally released her Byakugan, but found herself caught by Naruto. His eyes were still slightly red and slitted, but the aura of chakra and killing intent had vanished.

"Careful Hime. Don't hurt yourself by pushing too hard." He said softly, smiling down at her. Despite the gravity of the situation Hinata blushed deeply at being held in Naruto's arms and being called Hime. No one had ever called her that before.

"Naruto, why don't you and Hinata go check on Ino. You two were too busy fighting to notice, but she just had to kill someone, and I don't think she is taking it too well." Kurenai said as she limped past, heading towards Hayate to assist in interrogating the one Kiri-nin they had managed to capture alive. Naruto and Hinata turned their heads and instantly gasped as they were treated to a view of Ino puking her guts out next to the dead body of one of the Kiri-nin. Naruto set Hinata back on her feet and the two genin ran to their friend and teammate, kneeling beside her. Naruto held her shoulders and Hinata moved her hair out of her face. Ino muttered a hurried "thanks" before she was wracked by another round of sobs and gagging. The three genin remained that way for several minutes as Rukia and Renji bandaged their fallen teammate nearby.

Finally Ino was no longer vomiting, just crying softly. As she sat up Naruto pulled her lightly against him. Ino buried her head in his chest, crying profusely as Hinata hugged both of them.

"Shhh, it's ok Ino. It'll all be ok. Just calm down." Naruto and Hinata whispered softly to Ino, patting her bag and holding her close, providing her the comfort that her friends were there for her.

Meanwhile Kurenai was trying to get the captured shinobi to tell her who had sent him, but he was proving to be very resistant to her genjutsu. Her work was made even harder by the courier, who now that there was no threat was puffing himself up like he was someone important.

"I knew two genin teams wouldn't be enough to protect me. I nearly died, no thanks to the demon brat! I swear, when we get back I'm going to request that he have his status as a shinobi terminated. The Kyuubi no Kitsune nearly escaped for Kami's sake!."

Kurenai and Hayate gasped, shocked that even after everything he had done to protect him, and all the times he was stopped from breaking the Hokage's law, that the man would be stupid enough to do so now. Kurenai looked fearfully towards Naruto, but saw that he just sighed in response, leaning away from Hinata and Ino, who looked between him and the courier in confusion.

Before she and Hayate had a chance to formally arrest the man for breaking one of the Hokage's strictest laws she heard a pair of whooshes. She blinked as both the courier and the captured Kiri-nin collapsed, kunai protruding from the back of their skulls. She reacted immediately, performing an area genjutsu trying to catch the assassin, but he was already out of reach and running away.

"Kuso!" Kurenai cursed. After assuring herself that there were no other threats she turned back to the courier. She nearly jumped as Naruto was kneeling by the dead man, going through his pack.

"What are you doing Naruto?" Kurenai asked, crossing her arms. Hayate coughed, reminding Kurenai for the umpteenth time during the trip that she still had no idea how he was on active duty and not in the hospital.

"I'm looking for the message scroll sensei. Just because the idiot is dead doesn't mean the mission is a failure. As long as we can deliver the message to the Daimyou then I consider the baka an acceptable loss. Besides, he broke the Hokage's law. You know as well as I that his life was already over, one way or the other." Naruto stood, handing a scroll to Kurenai marked with the Sandaime's seal.

"Now if you'll excuse me Kurenai-sensei," Naruto bowed, "but thanks to the indiscretion of our charge I now have to have very awkward conversation with my teammates which I had hoped not to have quite yet." Naruto let out a sigh and muttered Shikamaru's favorite phrase. Kurenai watched as he walked over to his teammates, who were fixing him with gazes that could pierce stone, and sat down before them. Off to her side she heard Hayate begin to explain to his three confused genin about the Hokage's laws. When she looked back towards them Kurenai was pleased to see that the three merely looked thoughtful.

_Good. It looks like they won't judge him. But the question is, will Ino and Hinata? And more importantly, will they hate him for keeping it a secret?_ Kurenai pondered as she sighed and prepared to cremate the body of the fallen courier.

Meanwhile, Naruto was getting the third degree.

"Naruto…what just happened? What did the courier mean that the Kyuubi no Kitsune was getting free? I thought the Yondaime killed it?" Ino asked, staring at Naruto in confusion. Naruto turned from her questioning eyes to be met by Hinata's more piercing stare.

"That was your secret, wasn't it? The one that you couldn't tell us?" She asked softly but firmly. Naruto just nodded.

Hinata took a deep breath. "Could-could you please tell us the truth, Naruto? We are your friends, and we'll stand by you through anything. Just, please, trust us. Don't lie to us anymore." She stared deep into Naruto's eyes. Finally he sighed and began speaking.

"In Konoha, my birthday is never celebrated. It was a day of great tragedy in the village."

"The day the Kyuubi no Kitsune came…" Ino said, realizing what he meant. Naruto nodded before continuing.

"My father was able to defeat the Kyuubi, true, but not without a cost. The Kyuubi was too powerful to be killed or destroyed. He could only seal it away. So he sacrificed his life to the Shinigami so that he could seal the Kyuubi away within a malleable vessel, a prison and a jailor in one. Me." Hinata managed to contain her surprise, having figured some of this out. Ino's gasp of shock was nearly deafening.

Naruto sighed again and slowly pulled his shirt up. When both kunoichi looked at him in confusion Naruto brought his hands together and began molding some chakra. Not a lot, just enough for the seal on his stomach to become visible. Both girls gasped again.

_**Well, it seems that I was right Kit. Neither of them are running from you screaming in terror, and they've both born witness to you attempting to decapitate someone with your bare hands.**_ Kyuubi's voice echoed in Naruto's head. Naruto sighed, not deigning to reply.

"When I was six I finally asked my mom why everyone was always glaring at me when we would go into Konoha. She took me to the old man, who finally told me about what was inside of me. I spent the next six years of my life becoming a prankster to work out my frustrations that the people of Konoha would treat me so poorly when my father only ever wanted me to be seen as a hero for containing the Kyuubi no Kitsune to protect the village. Then came the day that the Kyuubi woke up."

Naruto's eyes were downcast as both girls gasped. He almost didn't continue, but then he felt both his hands held reassuringly, one by both of the girls. He looked up and was met with two bleary eyed kunoichi. Before he realized it Naruto was embraced in a tight hug by Hinata and Ino, and for the first time in his life, Uzumaki Naruto allowed himself to truly let down his mask and cry.

* * *

AN: And here is another chapter done. About the battle sequences, love em? Hate em? I haven't had much experience writing battles, so any feedback is greatly appreciated. Also, I'd like to know if you prefer the split up method of focus I used during the battle in the Wind Country back in chapter nine or the following everything method I used in this chapter. The last section of this took me forever to get the way I wanted it. But finally it's done, just before I head home too. You can expect my rate of updating to likely taper off because I'll be busy with other stuff while I am at home, but you can also look forward to possible uploads of chapters of some other projects, Naruto and otherwise. If you don't already have me on author alert now would be the time, as I won't make any future announcements about other projects here. As always, please read and review.

Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 12: Kirigakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Mist.

**Translations**

Chakra Myatsu: Genjutsu Kai – Chakra Pulse: Genjutsu Cancel

**Techniques - **This is a partial list both of new techniques and techniques I feel needed to have explanations enclosed.

**Chakra Myatsu:** **Genjutsu Kai**--_Chakra Pulse: Genjutsu Cancel/_ This technique, a variation of a method for removing genjutsu, was developed by Uzumaki Naruto to take advantage of his greater chakra capacity. By compressing a large amount of chakra really tightly, and tuning it with the appropriate hand seals, he can release a sphere of chakra up to two hundred meters in diameter, capable of disrupting most genjutsus and illusions. (Low C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Suirō no Jutsu**--_Water Prison Technique/_ This jutsu is used to trap the victim inside a virtually inescapable sphere of water. The only downside to this technique is that the user must keep one arm inside the sphere at all times in order for the victim to remain imprisoned. This jutsu cannot be performed without a sufficiently large body of water to supply the water for it. (B-Class Ninjutsu)

**Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu**--_Water Release: Water Dragon Blast Technique/_ A powerful attack that creates a huge current of water in the form of a dragon, and sends it towards the target. (B-Class Ninjutsu)


	12. Chapter 12: Kirigakure no Sato

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

Chapter 12: Kirigakure no Sato, City of Mist and Mischief

By joint decision of their Jounin senseis Teams 8 and 11 had continued on to the Daimyou's palace to deliver the courier's scroll and complete their mission. But before they had moved on from the site of the ambush Kurenai and Hayate had wisely taken Team 11 aside to give the crying Naruto and the two kunoichi embracing him time alone. Kurenai had explained the salient details of what had just happened to the three genin of Team 11 as Hayate had opted for sentry duty to ensure that no one else died because their guard was down. When Team 8 had finally separated Kurenai noticed that the girls stayed much closer to Naruto than usual, almost always with one or the other practically in direct contact with him. She also noticed that any time one of the two girls brushed against him Naruto would glance at them, his eyes a mixture of fear, sadness, and hope.

_He's had such pain thrust on him unwanted, isolated from most human contact. And even when he is around people, he's always wearing a mask, but inside he's still a young boy, learning for the first time about the cruelty of the world._

Kurenai thought as they gathered their gear and headed off down the path towards Kirigakure no Sato, the burnt corpse of the courier still smoldering in the afternoon light.

_But those two girls, they honestly care about him, even knowing he carries the Kyuubi no Kitsune. If anyone has a chance of saving him from his own demons, it's those two._

Kurenai allowed herself a slight smile as she brought up the rear of the procession of shinobi.

* * *

**Kirigakure no Sato, Two Hours Later…**

Team 8 and Team 11 were waiting at a small ramen shop on the outskirts of Kirigakure no Sato, making small talk with one another as they slowly ate their meal. They were waiting for Kurenai to return from delivering the scroll to the Daimyou. The Kirigakure guards were wary enough of even letting them in the city, much less allowing two fully armed squads of Konoha-nin direct access to the single most important person in their country; thus their current situation.

The three genin of Team 11 sat in a booth together, enjoying bowls of various flavors of ramen. Hayate and Renji kept glancing around, keeping an eye on several poorly – and not so poorly - disguised Kiri-nin that were in or near the shop, keeping an eye on them. They shouldn't have any problems, as they were there as official envoys of the Hokage, but still, better safe than sorry.

The three genin of Team 8 sat at the bar nearby on adjoining stools. Naruto sat between the two kunoichi, a tower of empty bowls already beside him. His two teammate's were working slowly on their second bowls, but it was clear they were nearly full. They spent most of their time casting furtive looks at Naruto, as if to reassure themselves that he was still there. Finally Kurenai returned, a frown on her face and muttering something about "two-faced rat bastards" and "stuck up royal harlots." Hinata and Ino could tell instantly that Kurenai's meeting with the Daimyou had not gone according to plan. Naruto however was seemingly oblivious to her return as he was currently drinking the broth from his tenth bowl of ramen.

When he set the bowl down and let out a sigh of contentment he looked around in confusion as two kunoichi dragged him backwards off the stool, leaving money for their food as they did so. Thus a whining Naruto was dragged away from his new favorite food.

Kurenai lead both teams to a nearby inn, pointedly ignoring all their questions as to how the meeting had gone. Kurenai ignored the fact that the grumpy old innkeeper blatantly overcharged them for the rooms, motioning with hand signs for her genin to keep quiet when she sensed the indignation rising in them. It wasn't until both teams were safely situated in one of the two rooms they had rented that Kurenai finally spoke to them.

Hayate sat lounging in a chair next to a small table along one wall of the room, Renji sitting opposite him and scowling. Ichigo was sitting grumpily on one of the beds while Rukia anxiously changed his bandages, making sure he wasn't further damaging his injuries, while glancing nervously at Kurenai. Finally the three genin of Team 8 were sitting on the end of the other bed, Naruto leaning forward with his hands clasped, the two kunoichi sitting straight but with a hand set carefully on his shoulder. Kurenai silently took note of their continued attentiveness to their teammate before beginning.

"Fuuton: Bun'ya Chinmoku no Jutsu" Kurenai said softly, the genin looking at her in surprise, but earning her a faint nod from Hayate as he silently performed the jutsu as well.

"Now that we can speak without being overheard, the mission is officially over. We have delivered the scroll to the Water Country Daimyou, and have been given a verbal response to carry back to the Fire Country Daimyou."

Kurenai paused before deepening her voice in imitation of the Daimyou.

"I, Lord Sanyou of the Country of Water, hereby reject the request of Prince Iro, son of Lord Anzuna of the Country of Fire, for my daughter, Princess Tomoe's, hand in marriage."

Kurenai closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Before she could continue she was met by a snort from Renji. She raised an eyebrow questioningly and he leant forward to respond.

"Well, that was basically the political equivalent of a 'screw you,' wasn't it?"

Kurenai was surprised by the genin's language, but judging by the way Hayate just shook his head this was a probably a regular occurrence.

"While those are not the words I would have chosen Abarai, they are quite apropos. Of course, this means that rather than waiting around for a week for a formal reply to carry back we have a day to recuperate and then we can speed back to Konoha. I sincerely doubt that we will face any opposition returning since the Daimyou chose to reject the request."

Kurenai sighed again, then groaned as she noticed the look in Naruto's eyes.

"Naruto, I hereby order you NOT to perform any pranks while we are in Kirigakure, do you understand?"

Naruto stared back at her over his hands for a long moment before slowly nodding his head. Hinata and Ino both let out their held breaths, while the three genin of Team 11 looked confused. Apparently they had yet to hear about Naruto's pranking nature. Kurenai hoped things would stay that way.

"Now, I want all of you to get a good night's sleep. Hayate and I will take turns on guard duty, and tomorrow we will restock on supplies and head back to Konoha. Do you all understand?"

Kurenai received a grunt from Ichigo, a nod from Rukia and a still scowling Renji, and a trio of 'Ryuoukai' from her team. She nodded, acknowledging them, then motioned for the three girls to follow her.

"Ichigo, Abarai, Naruto. You three wil sleep here tonight. Hayate will escort you to use the baths. You are under no circumstances,"

At this point Kurenai stared pointedly at Naruto, whose still-frowning face was obscured by his clasped hands.

"to go wandering off alone. We will meet back up after we all bathe and order food brought in. I know the mission has been stressful and you haven't had time to really get to know one another, so you are free to use the time before you go to sleep to talk and hang out."

Kurenai turned and started to head out the door, but noticed that only Kuchiki Rukia had stood and moved to gather her stuff. Ino and Hinata were still sitting pensively beside their morose teammate as he seemed lost in thought.

_It's bad enough that Naruto is stuck in a bad mood thanks to that idiot courier, but now those two are too busy trying to keep him afloat, I sincerely hope they get over this soon, or else I may have to take my team off active duty until they can get their stuff together._

"Ino, Hinata, come along." Kurenai said tersely. Being in what was technically enemy-territory had her on edge.

Both kunoichi looked up, their hands squeezing Naruto's shoulders. Kurenai could see the worry in their faces.

"Sensei, if it's ok with you, we'd rtather stay with Naruto." Ino said, speaking for both girls. Suddenly Naruto stood up, sliding out from under the two girls' hands.

"It's ok Ino-chan, Hime. I'll be alright. You two go get cleaned up. After the attacks we suffered, you both deserve to relax."

Naruto sent a questioning look to Hayate who nodded and stood up from his chair, coughing a little as usual.

"Ok boys, get moving. You stink like pigs in summer."

Ichigo grunted, annoyed as he stood, slipping his hands into his pockets and slouching slightly as he walked towards the door, following Naruto and his sensei out of the room. Renji stood slowly, not caring to move too quickly at the moment, and slipped his fancy sunglasses back on as he headed out of the room after his teammate.

The three kunoichi stared at Kurenai who shook her head and sighed before motioning for the three to follow her.

* * *

**Twenty Minutes Later, Hot Springs Baths**

The hot springs at the inn were quite large and separated by sex. The only other occupants on the men's side were a pair of old men in one corner and a man with long wild white hair sitting on a rock and meditating facing the wooden wall separating the male and female bathing areas, so the four shinobi had their choice of spots to lounge in the soothing warm water.

Ichigo chose to lie on his back on a rock in a shallower section of the artificial pool, staring up at the stars that occasionally showed through the mists. Hayate was relaxing in a comfortable corner while Renji sat nearby, smiling and thoroughly enjoying the relaxation. Naruto however did not seem to be intent on relaxing at all. Instead he was standing in the middle of the water on one foot, with four wooden poles balanced on top of each arm, trying to keep them perfectly steady. Every few minutes his balance would suddenly fluctuate and he would collapse into the water cursing before he climbed out and repeated the procedure. Renji had asked him why he was doing this instead of relaxing, but Naruto's reply didn't really illuminate anything for him.

"I'm trying to clear my head still from that last battle. It's either this or I do something decidedly more destructive."

The grimacing ninja ignored Renji after that response, instead focusing all his energy on his chakra control.

Meanwhile the four kunoichi were enjoying the much busier women's side of the baths. They were surrounded by about thirty females of varying ages, from a twelve year old swimming laps and splashing around to an old lady who was sitting calmly on a rock staring at a spot on the wall separating the two sections of the baths. Kurenai thought it looked odd, but sensing no threat paid the strange woman no more mind.

Sinking slowly into the heated, steaming water of the pool she let out a long sigh, slowly letting all the tension that had built up over the past three days bleed away. Nearby Hinata and Ino were talking animatedly with Rukia, trying to get to know the girl better now that they had the chance. Unlike Ino, Rukia had not been part of the 'Uchiha Sasuke Fanclub' back at the Academy. In fact, being three months older than Sasuke, she wouldn't have been interested in him anyways, since the rumors said she liked older men.

Also, she tended to hang out with her childhood friends Renji and Ichigo most of the time, and sometimes Chouji and Shikamaru when she would find Ichigo lazing off with them, instead of with the other girls in the class, so even Hinata did not know very much about her. As they chatted the two kunoichi realized that Rukia, while very silly at times, was quite bright and seemed to be holding on to some sort of pain. Knowing better than to pry, they merely steered the conversation away from any subject that was uncomfortable for the older kunoichi.

About twenty minutes into their long soak Kurenai's peaceful relaxation was interrupted by a sudden shout from the men's side of the fence.

"What do you think you are doing you old pervert?! Did you think you would get away with peeping on my Ino-chan and Hime?!"

Kurenai groaned as Naruto's voice rang through the air.

_Please don't let those two have noticed his wording. They are good for the gaki, certainly, but the last thing I need is three love sick teenagers._

Twin thuds echoed behind her confirmed her fears. Turning Kurenai saw both Hinata and Ino passed out on the side of the hot springs while Rukia looked back and forth between them, equal parts worry and confusion on her face. She sighed exasperatedly.

"Go away brat. I'm doing research!" An older male's voice echoed. Kurenai thought it sounded vaguely familiar.

"This isn't research. You're a pervert, pervert!" Naruto's voice came again.

"I'm not a pervert." The man said quietly. "I'm a super pervert!"

Kurenai could practically hear the man posing.

"Gotcha." The old woman on the rock spoke softly.

Kurenai watched surprised as the woman moved her hands through circular motions in front of her before slamming them skyward with a sharp jolt. Suddenly a geyser of water rose into the sky on the other side of the fence, propelling a half-naked man with long and extremely wild bushy white hair towards the horizon.

"There, now that that pervert Jiraiya is gone I can relax in peace."

The old woman muttered, performing a few hand seals. Suddenly the illusion of an old woman melted away, revealing a young woman who couldn't have been more than thirty. She had long fiery red hair and an assortment of gold and silver markings on her face. She stood, wrapped in a towel, and Kurenai could tell her figure could rival even her friend Anko's.

"What?" She asked, seeing Kurenai staring at her. "You act like you've never seen a kunoichi deliver divine retribution to that peeping tom of a Konoha-nin before."

The woman nonchalantly did a flip off the rock and landed beside the hotspirng, stepping gingerly into the warm water and sighing as she sank into it, her towel discarded on the side of the bath. Suddenly Kurenai realized why she had recognized the voice of that peeping tom. It had been Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha. She mentally smacked herself in the forehead, both for that, and for failing to see through this mysterious woman's henge.

"Just who exactly are you?" Kurenai asked warily.

The redheaded woman smiled disarmingly with her eyes closed as she sank deeper into the water.

"Oh, just a fellow kunoichi who needed a relaxing dip in some nice warm hot springs."

Kurenai's attention was diverted as her two students finally came to, both seeming to be suffering short term memory loss after hearing Naruto call them 'his.'

"Don't worry Kurenai-san. I'm no threat to you as long as you take care of your charge properly."

Kurenai turned back to look at the woman, but she was already gone. Likely she had used a Henge to hide herself amongst the other bathers to relax, but for the life of her Kurenai could find absolutely no trace of her.

_Whoever she is she must be a master at masking her chakra signature. I couldn't even sense her molding her chakra. And- Wait! She knew my name. How did she know my name? And what did she mean 'take care of my charge?'_

Kurenai's mind raced, each question spawning more questions. She knew she was going to have a headache in the morning.

* * *

**Kirigakure Shopping District, the Next Morning…**

Teams 8 and 11 had spent an uneventful night in the inn. When the sun finally shone through the mists everyone was well rested and ready to go. They ate breakfast in a small Western-style shop, enjoying a dish called pancakes that Ino just could not seem to get enough of, before heading off to pick up supplies. They bought food, bandages, and other supplies to replace those that had been lost or used during their trip to Kirigakure, as well as some small souvenirs. The genins were mostly unaware of their silent escort, but Hayate and Kurenai both kept a close eye on the Kirigakure ANBU who had been shadowing them throughout the morning.

Finally they reached their last destination, a weapons shop that Hayate knew. Apparently he had met the owner on a mission once and he had helped Hayate out of a tight spot. As they entered the shop Kurenai and the six genin marveled at the vast assortments of weapons. The shop was several times larger than your usual weapons shop, and had an entire wall dedicated to a variety of varied and strange looking swords. The opposite wall was covered in racks of varying styles of swords, all sheathed, as well as a section with some extremely large swords that looked similar to the ones the second ambush team had been using.

"Saa, Hayate-san. It is so very good to see you. Come on in. Can I get my man to offer you some tea while you shop?"

The apparent owner of the shop had a smile on his face as he approached Hayate with open arms, an elegant black cane in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. His clothes were similar to those worn by the genin of Team 11, just looser, and he wore old-style wooden sandals and an odd black and white striped hat as well. His outfit earned him a raised eyebrow from Renji, but the red-head held his tongue.

Standing behind him was a tall man with a large mustache, bulging muscles, and wearing sunglasses. He was dressed in simple work clothes, covered in dust and other signs of a smith.

"No thank you Kisuke-san. We won't be here for long. We just need to pick up some kunai, an replace my student's sword. He practically shattered it fighting an enemy the other day."

Hayate motioned and a grumpy Ichigo stepped forward, holding the sheath of his blade out in one hand and muttering 'here.' His attention was more focused on the wall filled with strange and exotic swords. The large man stepped forward and silently taking the sword from Ichigo. He and Kisuke shared a look before he nodded. Kisuke turned to face Team 11 again, taking note of the second team of Konoha-nin who had begun to wander around his shop, admiring the weapons.

"Well, I'm sure we can provide a replacement, but if you are not in too much of a rush we can reforge this sword instead. Does it carry any sentimental value for you?"

Kisuke asked, looking at Ichigo.

"Not particularly."

Ichigo muttered, his attention now very focused on a larger sword on the wall. The shop owner followed his gaze.

"Saa, I see you have taken notice of my collection. Well, my man Tessai here will get you a replacement katana from the back. I guarantee it will be sturdier than the one you have been using so far."

Kisuke tapped the ground with his cane twice and the man named Tessai nodded and turned, walking into the backroom. Ichigo promptly walked over to the wall to star at the magnificent blade that had entranced him.

The blade itself was long and curved, with a straight handle wrapped in white cloth projecting from the back end of the blade. The positioning of the handle gave the blade the appearance of being a thin elongated cleaver.

Nearby Naruto was slowly browsing over the wall of weapons, but found nothing of much interest to him, with the possible exception of a weapon identified by its tag as a 'swallow'. Hinata stood near him, not as interested in the weapons, but not wanting to be very far from her teammate, whose mood had drastically improved since the day before.

"Yatta! They carry them!"

Naruto and Hinata both turned at Ino's sudden triumphant yell. When she caught them looking at her Ino's smile just deepened and she held up several leather pouches.

"They have the new model Ikazuki senbon pouches. This is wicked awesome. You can't find these anywhere back in Konoha."

Naruto and Hinata sweat dropped. It seemed Ino's love of designer clothes and accessories carried over to ninja gear as well.

Hinata and Naruto returned to perusing weapons as Ino eagerly checked in her pouch for her money so that she could pay for the pouches. Naruto took a closer look at the swallow again, deciding it was a weapon he might like to learn to use, someday. The weapon flowed, almost like water or wind. It had two opposing blades, curved and sharpened on both sides, with the curves pointed in opposite directions. In between the blades a long handgrip formed of multiple curved pieces of wood and metal wrapped in leather connected to complete the weapon.

"I see you are intrigued by my collection, more than most customers are."

Naruto and Hinata turned to the source of the voice, seeing the shopkeeper standing by where the Rukia, Ichigo, and Renji were standing, a smile on his face.

"While none of these weapons are for sale, at least, not to those who have yet to prove themselves worthy, there is a fascinating legend behind them. Would you care to hear it?"

When all three genin nodded he smiled and sat down on a stool in the corner, leaning forward on his cane as he began his story…

* * *

**Long Ago, Before the Age of Ninja**

A young boy, barely twelve years old, sat with his back against a cliff in a stony desert in the middle of a cold clear night. The moon shone brightly overhead as the boy shivered. It was red, the color of red, and seemed to carry an ominous feeling with it. He was bloody, covered in cuts and bruises, and was nursing his left arm, which had a huge gash running from his shoulder to his elbow. The boy was surrounded, pushed back against the wall by a pack of hungry wolves.

The wolves growled as their leader howled, the pack moving and trying to intimidate the young boy. The boy cried as he huddled against the cliff, knowing that at any moment the wolves would attack again and his life would end.

Fwoosh.

A strong gust of wind blew by, reminding the young boy of a story he had heard once when he was a baby. His grandfather had told him that everything in nature has chakra, and thus everything, even the very ground you walk on, has a spirit. His grandfather had said that on rare nights, when the moon was full and red, these spirits would awaken, and could be asked to grant a boon.

The young man looked up, seeing the blood red moon hanging ominously in the sky.

The young boy also remembered that his grandfather had also cautioned that the kami are tricky things, and that while they may grant the boon requested, that person would forever be in their debt. He decided that anything was better than dying.

Huddling even tighter to the ground he began to beg the kami to grant him the power to survive, if only for a single day.

To the boy's surprise the spirits answered. One of them took form and slowly a sword materialized in the air in front of him. It was a little thicker than the usual katana, and a little longer as well. The hilt was curved slightly, and had a crimson ribbon trailing from it, with other decorations dangling from the hilt. The boy tentatively reached out and grasped the hilt, and as he did a whisper came to him on the wind.

"Benihime..."

The boy felt a power flow into him, healing his wounds and removing the weariness of his muscles. He stood, holding the blade in front of him as the wolves growled more, backing up, fear showing in their eyes. This scared animal they had cornered was no longer scared or injured. Instead he was radiating an aura of power, of dominance. One wolf did not back down though; the pack's alpha.

The larger wolf leapt at the young boy, only to find the boy moving to the side and slicing the wolf in half with the blade.

As the bloody pieces of the deceased pack leader collapsed to the ground with wet thuds some of the pack fled, some froze in fear, and three brave members approached carefully, sniffing, and submitted to this new alpha.

* * *

**Urahara Weapons Store**

"So that was the origin of the mythical Kami Blades. Over the centuries since then similar stories have arisen, but no one really knows if there is much truth to them. Some even claim that the Raijin no Ken of the Nidaime Hokage of Konoha was such a weapon, but most of us who study the myths don't put much stock in those rumors."

Renji snorted.

"Why not? That sounds about as farfetched as the story you just told us."

Kisuke looked Renji in the eye, all humor gone from his face and voice.

"Because, the Kami Blades are supposed to imbue the user with an almost preternatural ability to manipulate the element of the spirit in the sword. But the Nidaime Hokage was a Suiton master, not a Raiton master."

Renji snorted again.

"Sure, and pigs really fly."

Kisuke shrugged.

"Believe what you want to believe young man, but I personally believe in the existence of Kami Blades. Just remember to be careful what you wish for on the night of the blood moon young ninja. You may live to regret it."

"Ichigo, Rukia, Renji. COUGH COUGH It's time to go."

The three genin turned to go as their sensei called for them, Ichigo glancing back over his shoulder, still feeling drawn to the sword with the white handgrip.

Team 11 followed Kurenai and Team 8 out of the store, Kisuke standing and leaning on his cane, smiling as Tessai stepped up silently behind him. As the last of the genin left the shop he opened his eyes, his expression suddenly serious.

"Saa, after so long, I think we have found some new candidates my friend. What do you think?"

He turned his head to look at Tessai. Tessai merely sniffed the air, letting out a low growl. Kisuke returned his attention forward.

"That's what I thought. It seems as if _he_ is still alive after all."

As Teams 8 and 11 walked down the street towards the exit from Kirigakure no Sato none of them noticed a pair of young wolves slink out of an alley and slip inside the Urahara Weapons Store.

* * *

AN: Another chapter finally finished. I apologize for it taking so long, but I'm actually home for the next month and quite busy. The actual writing of this chapter really only took three days, but I couldn't get started on it until late Wednesday night, and then I was really tired so I only got a small portion done that night. I won't bother to ask anyone to guess the cameos, as they are quite blatant, much more so than I had originally intended. But as I've been working out the details of a specific subplot I found that I couldn't write the segments dealing with it the way I wanted without it being obvious what the cameos were.

Now, I hope no one is disappointed that this was a relatively quiet chapter, but I felt it was a good way to set certain events in motion, and to set up the first brief encounter between Kurenai and one of the many people with a vested interest in Naruto. I hope you enjoyed Jiraiya getting his, so to speak. Meanwhile, two cameo points to whoever can identify what sort of ability the "old lady" was using and posts it in their review first. Remember, the more cameo points you have when you trade them in, the more notable of a role your cameo will be. And no, I will not give cameos relationships with Uchiha Sasuke, so please, fangirls, do not ask.

Anyways, now that that is out of the way I present the translation lists. Please remember to R&R. Your feedback helps improve my writing. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 13: Rescue in the Wave.

**Translations**

Benihime - Crimson Princess

Hime - Princes

Fuuton: Bun'ya Chinmoku no Jutsu - Wind Release: Silence Sphere Technique

Fuuton: Ura Bun'ya Chinmoku no Jutsu - Wind Release: Reverse Silence Sphere Technique

**Techniques - **This is a partial list of new techniques and techniques I feel need to have an explanation enclosed.

**Fuuton: Bun'ya Chinmoku no Jutsu** -- _Wind Release: Silence Sphere Technique/_ This technique creates a sphere around the user, the size of which is directly tied to the amount of chakra put into it. This sphere completely blocks all sound waves inside it and reflects them back in. This prevents anyone outside the sphere from hearing what is going on inside the sphere. There is a more difficult technique, the Fuuton: Ura Bun'ya Chinmoku no Jutsu, which prevents those inside the sphere from hearing sounds outside of it. This sphere is projected around a target, rather than created around the user, and requires much higher chakra control to perform without alerting the target(s). While technically a ninjutsu, the nature of the control used is much more closely related to genjutsu. As such, genjutsu users tend to be able to pick this technique up much easier than they do other ninjutsu techniques.(B-Class Ninjutsu)


	13. Chapter 13: Rescue in the Wave

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 13: Rescue in the Wave

It took Teams 8 and 11 a mere two days to return to Konoha, even with their injuries. As they no longer had a courier to baby they moved at top speed, anxious to get home to the rest and recuperation they were assuredly do – as well as the increased pay for a mission that had gone from a C-rank to an A-rank thanks to the multiple ambushes. Team 11 was pretty certain to be out of commission for a little while, as two of its members needed skilled medical attention to repair the wounds to their arms. Team 8 on the other hand was largely unscathed. Except for a few nicks bruises and cuts the trio of genin were as spirited as could be expected, given the mission they had just been through.

Finally, on the dawn of the third day, the massive wall guarding Konoha finally came into view. Kurenai heard a cry of "Yatta!" from Naruto who was on point, followed by echoing cries from Ino and Hinata. Hinata was guarding the left flank, her right arm bare since her jacket got sliced during the fight with the Kiri-nin, while Ino guarded the left flank, her fancy new senbon pouches strapped to her hips. Both kunoichi glanced at each other, sharing a grin.

"Teenagers…" Kurenai muttered softly to herself. "All they are is excitement and raging hormones. At least none of them seem too shook up anymore over witnessing death, but I should schedule them an appointment with Obaki-san as soon as possible, just to make sure."

As the teams condensed and slowed down to a sedate walk as they approached the gate Kurenai noticed that the two gate guards, a pair of chunin by the names of Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki whom Kurenai recognized as usually being assigned to guard either the gates or the Hokage's office, waved back as Naruto waved and shouted excitedly. Her energetic student did a front flip and a roll before leaping into the air, and Kurenai noticed that both chunin appeared to have genuinely happy grins at his antics. Ino and Hinata noticed this as well.

_Whoever those two are, they seem to not view Naruto as scum. I hope that more people will come to realize that he is not what he carries…in time._

Hinata thought, smiling softly to herself. Next to her Ino's thoughts were a tad bit different.

_It's fine if other guys start seeing Naruto for who he really is, but any girl other than Hinata or myself who makes a move on OUR Naruto-kun is a dead girl._

* * *

**Hokage's Office, Half an Hour Later…**

_They all seem changed…_ Sarutobi mused as the members of Team 8 and Team 11 stood at attention before him. _They have obviously been forced to grow up fast by this mission.ˆ_

Before him Hayate and Kurenai were reporting on the mission, both the ambushes and the meeting with the Daimyou of the Water Country. Sarutobi resisted the urge to cringe as Kurenai mentioned the Daimyou's response to the special request.

"Hmm, so the Daimyou of the Water Country does not see the value in the diplomatic ties the marriage of Prince Iro and his daughter would bring. This is quite important intelligence. You behaved appropriately when you chose to continue the mission, despite the courier being killed."

Sarutobi smiled faintly behind his clasped hands.

"I knew I was correct to entrust the true knowledge of this mission to you."

Kurenai blushed faintly. It may not have sounded like much, but that was high praise from the Hokage when he was being careful not to reveal that Kurenai had been assigned a second mission, on top of the escort mission. He had assigned her to evaluate the feelings of the Water Daimyou towards Konoha, so that they might be prepared if they were planning a war. After the civil war a few years back Kirigakure had been a bit unstable, and the Water Daimyou had become more arrogant after his victory.

"Now, I have an urgent mission that I need to assign. My first choice would be a chunin or even jounin team, but unfortunately the only teams I have to spare are yours and Team 8."

Sarutobi noted that the genin of Team 11 started grumbling, while those of Team 8 looked a mixture of confused, annoyed, and in Naruto's case excited.

"Team 11 would have been my first choice of your two teams Kurenai, Hayate. But unfortunately your two strongest protégées were injured and are unable to wield their swords properly now."

Sarutobi looked apologetically at the muttering Ichigo and Renji before he continued.

"Hayate, I want you to take your team to the hospital and get them fixed up. Team 11 is temporarily on leave to recover from your injuries. Kurenai, I want you and your team to remain. There are some details of the mission that I must explain quickly, as there is very little time to waste."

Hayate led his grumbling team away as Team 8 remained at attention. Sarutobi noticed that Naruto was completely focused, completely serious.

_So, Naruto is finally beginning to take being a ninja serious. Or maybe, the mask has simply begun to slip._

As soon as Team 11 was gone and the door to his office was closed Sarutobi clasped his hands again and continued.

"Team 8. I received a communiqué by messenger bird this morning. It was short and to the point. Team 7 was assigned an escort mission to the Wave Country three days ago. It was only supposed to be a C-rank mission. But the customer lied."

Kurenai remained still, but she heard Hinata and Ino both let out a gasp. Apparently neither of them had considered the possibility that a customer could lie about a mission.

"The customer was a bridge builder from the Wave Country. He wasn't simply afraid of bandits attacking. He was aware that a corrupt businessman in his country had hired nukenin in order to prevent him from completing a new bridge between Wave and the mainland."

Sarutobi paused again. He noticed that Ino seemed to be a bit nervous, Hinata seemed a mixture of apprehensive and worried, casting furtive glances at Naruto, and Naruto was frowning.

_Hmm, it seems that Ms. Yamanaka is worried about the Uchiha heir. She must still have feelings for him._

"But we just got back from a mission that went from being C-Ranked to being A-Ranked, and OUR Naruto nearly had to kill somebody to save us. Shouldn't he be being given time to recover and get help dealing with that, instead of being sent out to rescue that cold-fish of an Uchiha."

Sarutobi looked at the yelling Yamanaka with a bit of confusion on his face.

"Miss Yamanaka, I was under the impression from Iruka's reports that you found Uchiha Sasuke to be attractive."

Iruka, who had just entered the room after filing some paperwork for the Hokage winced as Ino practically screamed back.

"MAYBE I DID ONCE, BUT SASUKE ONLY CARES FOR HIMSELF!! WHY WOULD I EVER REMAIN OBSESSED WITH THAT SORT OF DEAD FISH WHEN THERE ARE GUYS LIKE NARUTO AROUND!?"

All three adults noticed that Hinata smiled faintly to hear Ino yell like that. They also noticed the sudden blush and confusion that rose on Naruto's face as he looked between Sarutobi and Ino. Sarutobi merely shrugged is shoulders, his face saying "what can you do?"

"Ino, I understand you have strong feelings on this matter, but please, address the Hokage with more respect."

Ino instantly cringed a little, muttering apologies as she stepped back next to Naruto, whose face was still brilliantly red.

Iruka sat down next to the Hokage as he began to explain the exact details of Team 8's rescue mission.

* * *

**Three Hours Later…**

Naruto hurried through Konoha, using the rooftops as a path as he headed towards the main gates.

"I'm late I'm late I'm late." He muttered over and over as his untied blond hair blew behind him in the wind while he frantically attempted to get his head wrap and hitai-ate tied on.

_**Well Kit, maybe you shouldn't have wasted so much time sleeping in the shower.**_

_I wasn't sleeping I was meditating damn it!_

_**Sure you were Kit. And I'm Enma's uncle.**_

_Who's Enma?_

_**I'll tell you when you're older, Kit.**_

Kyuubi's laughter echoed in Naruto's head as he continued his frantic dash to be on time.

* * *

**Konoha Gates…**

Kurenai paced impatiently just inside the gates, waiting for her third and final student to finally arrive. Ino was lounging nearby with her hands behind her head, presumably relaxing, and next to her Hinata performing breathing exercises. When she looked closer Kurenai realized she was wrong. Hinata wasn't performing breathing exercises, she was…

CRACKLE

Hinata practically jumped out of her seat as a spark of lightning leapt between her fingertips.

"Yatta!" she exclaimed, standing up, in her excitement forgetting she hadn't discharged the lightning from her hand. She accidentally brushed it against Ino's shoulder.

ZAP

Ino's hair was suddenly frizzing out around her like a halo as the kunoichi blinked in confusion. This was how Naruto found them when he finally showed up.

* * *

**Edge of the Fire Country, One Day Later…**

Team 8 stood along the shore of the Fire Country, staring off into the mists that seemed to perpetually float over the water in these parts. Naruto was crouched, waiting for a pair of Kage Bunshin he had sent out to scout the seemingly preternatural mists to report back. Hinata had her Byakugan active as she scanned their environment, and Ino had her senbon ready to throw if a threat presented itself. In the middle of the group Kurenai stood frowning. She couldn't detect any sign of chakra manipulation or genjutsu, but better safe than sorry after the experience of their last mission.

Suddenly Naruto straightened, sighed, and returned his two kunai to their spot in his sleeves.

"It's safe." He announced, stretching.

Both of his teammates visibly relaxed as they put away their weapons.

"Are you certain Naruto?" Kurenai asked, still wary.

Naruto nodded, stretching backwards and nearly touching the ground with the palm of his hands before returning to an upright position.

"Then Team 8, move out."

The four members of Team 8 stepped out onto the water, running into the mists.

* * *

**Wave Country, One Hour Later…**

KNOCK KNOCK

Sakura looked up from where she was changing the bandages on Kiba's arms, fear evident on her face.

In the kitchen Tazuna, his daughter Tsunami, and his grandson Inari all huddled, their dinner forgotten cooling on the kitchen table.

Motioning for quiet, Sasuke crept quickly and quietly to the door as rain pelted the windows, kunai drawn in each hand.

After waiting for a heartbeat Sasuke flung the door open, prepared to strike or defend if it was an enemy.

Standing before Sasuke a frowning, wet, dark haired woman with a Konoha hitai-ate and a raised eyebrow.

"Well, its good to see that Kakashi at least taught you to be properly wary, but you can put your kunai aware now Uchiha."

The normally collected Uchiha blushed in annoyance and embarrassment at being dressed down, if only subtly. He quickly sheathed his kunai as he stepped backward so the kunoichi could enter.

Kurenai did so swiftly, taking a quick assessment as she entered the room. Three civilians in the kitchen, one genin with his arms bandaged, no indication of disability. Two genin strained but unharmed. One nin-dog, uninjured. No sign of their jounin sensei.

Sasuke glowered as the jounin's team followed her in.

Naruto looked brooding as he was first to enter. Soaked to the bone, his clothes took on a darker shade, and his bright blond hair was mostly covered by his black head wrap. Even in this dark weather he still had on his sunglasses, the only part of his ensemble that did not seem affected by the rain.

Hinata followed him, the bandages on her exposed right arm soaked by the rain. She noticed the glares Sasuke was shooting at Naruto. So did Ino.

Ino was thoroughly soaked and she felt like a wet dog, although she would never have admitted it. But she forgot all about it when she caught Sasuke glaring at HER Naruto-kun.

_Damn it Sasuke, if you bother Naruto I swear I'll make you wish you were dead._

Ino's train of thought was disrupted as she caught sight of Sakura.

Her old friend looked tired and stressed.

_Well, I guess nearly being killed by an S-rank nukenin will do that to you._

She thought to herself.

"How are you doing, forehead?"

She said aloud.

Sakura blinked at her, almost disbelieving that this young woman standing before he radiating confidence and a tiny bit of worry could be her friend Ino, the very same girl who barely five weeks earlier had been chasing after Sasuke the same as her.

"Ino-pig? What are you doing here?" she asked faintly.

Ino chuckled faintly, smiling softly. It was Kurenai-sensei who answered the pink-haired kunoichi's question.

"We are here, Miss Haruno, to back up your team. Where is Hatake Kakashi?"

Sasuke responded immediately with derision, sneering at Team 8.

"Why would we need backup, especially from a group of useless kunoichi and the dobe?"

Sakura was shocked to hear her beloved Sasuke-kun dismiss her fellow kunoichi as useless. She was even more surprised to see Ino shooting Sasuke a withering look and seemingly counting down on her fingers.

_Ten…_

"We killed the main threat already. The remaining mercenaries will be no threat once Kakashi-sensei is recovered. So you might as well turn around and return to Konoha."

_Two…_

Sasuke smirked and crossed his arms as he leant against the wall besides Sakura and Kiba. Kiba, Sakura, and a whimpering Akamaru wisely scooted their chairs away from the Uchiha heir.

_Zero…_

A pair of oddly-shaped tri-tipped kunai embedded themselves in the wall to either side of Sasuke's head, so close that they cut the cloth holding Sasuke's hitai-ate in place, causing it to clatter to the floor, the noise deafening in the tense room. In the kitchen the three civilians, who had begun to stand up as the situation appeared to be safe, promptly ducked back under the table.

The Uchiha-teme's eyes widened in surprise. Standing before him were two very pissed off kunoichi, both shouting at him about "not insulting OUR Naruto," a jouni shooting him a very disapproving glare, and one very pissed off Namikaze.

Naruto was practically crouched as he glared at the Uchiha, his sunglasses dangling around his neck, revealing eyes that suddenly seemed more purple than blue. He kept clenching and unclenching his fists.

It was clear to Sasuke that Naruto had thrown the two kunai, and as he realized just how accurately the 'dobe' had thrown them and began to glare right back. The biting remark he had on the tip of his tongue was forestalled though as Kakashi limped into the room, his favorite orange book noticeable in its absence.

"That's enough Sasuke."

Kakashi's visible eye revealed that he was frowning.

"I thought you had better manners than that, since you come from the elite Uchiha clan."

Kakashi's further comments were negated as a now slightly less murderous looking Naruto, his eyes returned to their usual blue, stepped towards him.

"Hello Kakashi nii-san. It's been a while."

Sasuke watched in surprise as his sensei not only smiled at the 'dobe', but also stepped forward to embrace him in a hug.

"It certainly has Naruto, but it was unavoidable. The Hokage had me on a long-term assignment and as soon as I returned he asked me to take on a genin team. I haven't really had the time to come by and see you since I've been so busy with training my team."

Naruto could tell from the sudden shout from Kiba about Kakashi being a 'liar' that his nii-san hadn't changed.

"Haha, still being lazy as usual it seems." Naruto said as he ended the hug, smiling at the taller grey haired ninja. "Well, that's alright, because you have us to help train your team while you recover, and I've brought a gift for you."

With that Naruto quickly dug through his pack as the gathered members of Team 7 and Team 8 watched in confusion. Sasuke was still glaring at him, having yet to pick up his fallen hitai-ate.

_What makes that 'dobe' so special? Sensei is treating him like a favored student. But I'M supposed to be the best! _Sasuke thought, his glare darkening as he grew grumpier.

_Why is sensei so happy to see Naruto? He should be paying attention to Sasuke not that idiot!_ Sakura thought to herself.

_**Chaa! Sasuke-kun totally rules!! **_Inner Sakura replied, raising a fist as she exclaimed.

Naruto finally extracted his arm from his bag, pulling out a large gold-embossed hard cover orange book. The members of Team 7 groaned, recognizing the orange cover.

Kakashi's eye widened in surprise as he reached out shaking hands to receive the precious book.

"Icha Icha Paradise…Gold First Edition…"

Kakashi stared at the book in awe and amazement before finally looking back up at Naruto.

"Naruto, there were only ever six copies of this edition produced. How did you get your hands on one?"

Kakashi stared at Naruto as Naruto chuckled slightly and scratched the back of his head.

"Well nii-san, during our last mission I kinda ran into the author, again, and caught him trying to peep on my teammates. In exchange for not telling Tsunade-sama what he was doing he gave me a signed copy."

Kakashi stared down at the book again.

_It's a signed copy?! Jiraiya never signed any of these. He must have really wanted to avoid Tsunade's wrath this time._

"Um, Naruto? Who is this Tsunade, and why would Jiraiya be afraid of her?" Ino asked, confusion on her face. Hinata on the other hand had suddenly brightened.

"Naruto-kun, you know Tsunade-sama!?"

When Naruto nodded he was instantly tackled in a hug by his teammate.

"Please, you have to introduce me to her. She's the greatest medical expert in the world!!"

Naruto shot Kurenai a look that said "help me", but the older kunoichi just shook her head and smiled.

_No Naruto, you have to get out of this one on your own._

* * *

**Gato's Mansion**

Zabuza lay bandaged in a bed, rain splattering against the windows. Haku knelt by his side, tending to his wounds when the door was slammed open by Gato, flanked by four of his mercenary guards.

"Well, _Zabuza_, it appears that those Demon Brothers of yours were no match for the ninja that that damn bridge builder hired to protect him. I need to know if you will actually be able to complete the mission I hired you for, or should I just call the Mist hunter-nins right now and let them know you are incapacitated here?"

Gato reached to grab the prone Zabuza's shoulder while he said this, only to be stopped by Haku suddenly intercepting his arm, his grip practically crushing the fat businessman's wrist.

"You will not touch Zabuza-sama." He said, anger in his eyes.

Gato pulled back his hand, affronted. He was about to order his men to kill the insolent punk when he found the point of Kubikiri Houchou against his throat. Gato swallowed.

"You will not lay a hand on my subordinate. I _will_ kill the bridge builder, and you _will_ pay us the agreed upon amount. Now, leave me. I must recover so that I can kill that Konoha shinobi who interfered."

As Zabuza leaned back onto the bed his thoughts were on his latest opponent.

_Sharingan Kakashi. I WILL defeat you._

As Gato and his men left in a huff Haku turned to face his master again.

"Zabuza-sama. I estimate that it will take four more days for you to recover."

Zabuza grimaced as Haku adjusted one of his bandages.

"Then on the fifth day we make our move."

* * *

**Four Days and Counting…**

* * *

AN: So, here it is, Chapter 13, finally. took me a few days longer than I originally planned, but I was very busy volunteering at a surf contest most of the weekend, so I didn't end up getting a lot of writing time in. Anyways, with this chapter events begin to be set in motion. Soon you will all be given the promised Naruto vs Sasuke fight I misled you to believe was coming earlier, a great ninja will rise, and a demon will fall.

Now, there are two cameo point opportunities to inform you of. First, there was a cameo of a weapon in the last chapter, a specific weapon. The person who can leave me in a review the name of the character who wields it will receive 2 cameo points. Second, there was a phrase in here which was a blatant bastardization of an old saying. The person who leaves this saying in a review will get 2 cameo points. And galidarion is forbidden to answer the cameo questions. I feel that someone who actually knows me will figure them out to easily. (see previous contests to see why)

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. With a little luck the next chapter will be up by Friday at the latest. Please remember to read and review. your reviews are the only way I really know if you like what I'm writing, and constructive reviews (and constructive criticism) help me become a better writer. I've also decided that when I respond to reviews I will do so here in the AN, so i you leave a review please remember to check the AN next chapter for a response. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 14: Training in the Wave.

**Update: **For those of you who simply have me on story alert and not author alert, this notice is to inform you that I have uploaded the first chapter of my second Naruto fic, Konoha's Golden Viper. I'll repeat this update on the next chapter for those who have already read this one. Have a pleasant day.

**No translations or techniques this chapter.**

**Review Responses**

Yondaimerocks56695 - sorry, but that is one spoiler I don't want to give out, particularly since it is such a complex question. I mean, within this universe, just where does the line between simple sword and zanpaktou lie? I'll just say that Benihime is not the first, and certainly not the last, powerful ninjutsu sword that will be seen.

landoffire - thanks for review. It always makes me smile to know that someone is actually enjoying my story


	14. Chapter 14: Training in the Wave

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 14: Training in the Wave

The following morning the genin of Team 7 were lead into the forest by Yuhi Kurenai to receive their first exercise. Naruto left several Kage Bunshin in strategic locations to look over Tazuna and his family, as well as several others he assigned to assist Tsunami in chores around the house.

When they reached their destination, a small clearing surrounded by tall trees with few branches on the lower part of their trunks that Team 8 had passed on their way there, Kurenai stopped and looked around.

"Hinata, Delta Gaze."

Hinata didn't waste anytime activating her Byakugan. After a few seconds she ended it and spoke.

"No threats within my range sensei. All clear."

Kurenai nodded before turning to face the six genin.

"Now, since Kakashi is still recovering, I shall be your instructor for the next four days. First, what has Kakashi taught you so far."

Kurenai did not like the way all three genin looked around shiftily.

"Um, sensei?" Sakura said hesitatingly. "He really hasn't taught us much more than teamwork exercises and some taijutsu sparring."

Kurenai sweat dropped.

_Damn that Kakashi. You took them on what has become an A-rank mission and you haven't even been training them properly. You are so going to pay for this when we get back to Konoha._

"That's right sensei. If I hadn't been doing extra training on my own with my mom and Naruto I'd have learned nothing in the last month." Kiba said, his rowdiness returning.

Akamaru barked in agreement.

Kurenai looked at Naruto with a question in her gaze. Naruto grinned back at her, his hair practically glowing in the early morning sunlight.

"Naruto, I thought I told you to get enough rest." Kurenai said sternly.

"I know you did sensei, but I only ever need five or six hours of sleep a night, and Kiba needed an actual sparring partner so he and Akamaru could improve."

Kurenai sighed.

_Naruto, what am I going to do with you?_ She thought, ruefully.

"Now, since your sensei has basically taught you nothing I am going to start you out on a basic chakra control exercise."

She was suddenly inundated by a flood of complaints from Sasuke and Sakura about 'useless dobe exercises' and 'teach us something we can use in a fight.'

"Enough!" Naruto's voice rang out, stopping the two genin in their tracks. Kurenai noticed that Naruto had somehow learned Iruka's 'Demon Head' technique.

"Please continue sensei." Naruto said at a normal volume, pointedly ignoring the glares Sasuke and Sakura were sending his way.

Kurenai nodded. "Thank you Naruto. Now, this exercise is to concentrate your chakra and extrude it in a controlled manner through the bottom of your feet. Your feet is the most difficult region to manipulate and control chakra in, so if you can master this technique you will greatly improve your chakra control."

"But why does this matter to us? Why don't you just teach me an attack jutsu I can use to fight that bastard Kiri-nin."

Kurenai stared at Sasuke, her lips pursed.

"Because, Uchiha, I do not believe that you have the necessary chakra control to learn anything I might teach you. But mastering this technique will make your techniques easier to perform, lower the amount of chakra they consume, and improve your physical endurace."

She returned her gaze to the rest of the genin.

"Naruto, would you like to demonstrate the tree walking technique?"

Naruto, who had been leaning against a tree since using the 'Demon Head' technique shrugged and stepped forward. He brought his hands together and performed a hand seal. His feet were suddenly surrounded by a faint blue glow.

"The first step," he began, "is to gather your chakra in your feet. You must be careful, because if you release too little you will not stick to your target."

To demonstrate this Naruto walked forward and began walking up the side of a tree as if he was walking on the ground. He turned to face them.

"Like this." Suddenly Naruto began dropping straight towards the ground, his feet sliding down the tree. His momentum stopped about a foot above the ground and he cocked his head up, grinning.

"Likewise, if you use too much."

Suddenly there was a crack and Naruto went rolling away from the tree, coming up in a standing position. There was a deep cracked dent in the tree where he had been standing.

"You damage what you are walking on and get thrown off."

Naruto grinned and walked back up the tree, stopping about thirty feet up, hanging upside down from a branch.

"Since you are just beginning to learn this technique I suggest you get a running start. Here."

Naruto pulled out three normal kunai and tossed them at the feet of the three members of Team 7.

"Use these to mark where you get to, and just keep working to surpass your previous mark."

Naruto grinned and walked around the branch until he was standing on top of it.

Down below the members of Team 8 were all silently cheering for Naruto in their own ways.

_Naruto, I think you will make a great teacher someday. If you don't get killed for your pranking first._ Kurenai thought, smiling faintly.

_That's my Naruto-kun. _Hinata smiled.

_That's it Naruto. Show them how it's done! _Ino cheered in her head.

"Hehe, that's it Naruto. Show them how it's done." She said slightly more sedately than she thought it.

Sakura turned to look at her friend.

_What is wrong with Ino? I know she is in love with Sasuke like me, so why is she still cheering on that baka?_

"Ok you three, you heard Naruto. I want you to start repeating this exercise. If you can all master it quickly enough I will teach you an even harder exercise that will improve your chakra control even more, and improve your chances against this Zabuza."

Sasuke grumbled, Sakura looked thoughtful, and Kiba grinned as he and Akamaru both lined up on a tree, ready to run up it.

The three genin performed the hand seal and rushed their chosen trees.

Sasuke made it up ten feet before he crushed the bark of the tree and went spinning off.

Kiba made it fifteen feet up before he did the same.

Akamaru and Sakura were no where to be seen.

"Yoohoo." "Bark!"

Everyone looked up. On two branches high in the trees Sakura and Akamaru sat looking down at the others.

Akamaru panted as he looked down at his master, while Sakura was sitting on a branch smiling, letting her legs dangle.

"Very impressive Sakura. I'd still like you to work on this exercise to improve your endurance, but I can safely say that you have the chakra control to handle the second exercise. I'll teach it to you tomorrow."

Sakura smiled from her perch.

_**Shannaro! We're the greatest!**_

"Kiba, Sasuke, just keep working on the exercise. I'll return at noon with some lunch to check on your progress."

Kurenai turned to leave, followed by her students.

"Wait. Why aren't your other students practicing this exercise with us?"

Kurenai looked back over her shoulder.

"Because I have some techniques I need to teach them." She said simply.

For any other genin that should have been enough. Not for Sasuke.

"Then teach me as well. I don't see why I should have to do this stupid exercise while they get preferential treatment."

Kurenai stopped and turned to face Sasuke. Up in her tree Sakura winced as she saw the harsh expression on Kurenai's face.

"I do not like this arrogance you have Sasuke. You may be the last loyal Uchiha, but that does not excuse your behavior. The reason my students are not doing this exercise is that they mastered it in their first week of training. They also mastered the second exercise I assigned to them. On top of that, all three of them have been working extremely hard for a month to build up their endurance. So it would be a waste to have them repeat an exercise they already know when I can better use the time helping them in mastering the techniques I gave them to learn on their own a week ago. Particularly since they should assist in the fight with Zabuza."

Sasuke didn't shrink back from the jounin, but he did have the brains to shut up. He hated being talked down to like that though.

Kurenai turned and exited the clearing, followed by Hinata and Ino, who kept shooting disapproving looks at Sasuke. Overhead, a grinning Naruto pulled out a kunai and stapped himself, vanishing in a puff of smoke

* * *

About half a mile away in a much larger clearing four hundred clones of Naruto stood in two rows. One row was covered in Kunai, preparing to throw them at their opponents. The other row all had their hands together, ready to perform hand seals.

At the end of the second row one Naruto blinked and grinned, having just received the memories from his dispelled clone.

"Ok everyone, let's do this."

All four hundred copies of Naruto grinned as half the weaponized ones charged their targets, while the other half began throwing kunai. The second row performed a set of hand seals and spoke as one.

"Fuuton: Kaze Tate.

* * *

Halfway between Naruto and Team 7 Kurenai stopped her remaining students in a small glade.

Hinata and Ino were not surprised that Naruto had disappeared. The night before he had explained that he was going to be using his Shadow Clone training method, so they both understood why he was missing. That and the technique he was practicing tended to do a number on his surroundings.

"Now, first I want you to show me how far you have come on mastering your second techniques." Kurenai said, smiling at her students. She was proud to have two such dedicated kunoichi as these to teach.

Hinata and Ino grinned, and then as if by silent agreement Ino stepped forward.

"Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu!" She cried out.

There was a fwoosh and suddenly a small dense cloud of water vapor formed around her. But it dissipated almost immediately.

Kurenai frowned.

"You've been practicing this for several days now. Do you have any idea why you can't get it to work properly?"

Ino frowned, shaking her head no.

"Every time I perform the technique I either pull too hard and get drenched, or I don't pull hard enough and the cloud dissipates. But I can't seem to make it form farther away from me than a few feet."

Kurenai frowned for a moment before having an idea.

"Ino, I'm going to teach you an even more basic jutsu. This jutsu is considered an E-rank, but is rarely taught to academy students outside of Kirigakure and Amegakure."

Kurenai performed a quick hand seal.

"Suiton: Shuukou."

The air around them seemed to suddenly grow heavy, more humid.

Ino blinked.

"This jutsu causes the air around you to become saturated with water. While Kirigakure converts the moisture in the air or water sources near you into a mist, it is a lot harder to draw water into the air with it. By using this first you can saturate the air, making it easier to perform Kirigakure, and even easier to perform other Suiton techniques like the Teppoudama."

Ino grinned and sat down, practicing the hand seals and thinking about what Kurenai had said. Kurenai turned to face Hinata.

"Now, I noticed earlier you were causing a spark to go between your hands. That isn't typical of the Raiton: Dengeki Haaku."

Hinata nodded. "That's correct sensei. I mastered the Dengeki Haaku before I learned the Raitama."

Kurenai blinked.

"That is a very impressive feat Hinata."

Ino frowned slightly, annoyed that she couldn't master her simple D-rank water jutsu but that her partner could master two C-rank jutsus.

"I suspect it's because of the immense work on chakra control I had to have in order to use the Jyuken, sensei. Manipulating the chakra to project the energy was so similar it just sort of flowed."

"But if that's true, why were you practicing a Ration technique during our tip here? And why haven't you asked for a new technique to learn yet."

Kurenai crossed her arms. She didn't want to think her student was slacking off, but she had seen it happen to better ninjas. She instantly thought of Kakashi and his tardiness.

"Well, Raiton jutus use a lot of chakra. I've been working to find out the minimum amount I need to trigger the jutsu, and how to change my chakra flow to change the power output of the jutsu. I realized that it's a waste to unleash a full Dengeki Haaku if you are using it to do something specific, like ignite a fuse or disable a limb. So I figured if I could control the technique to the level where I can produce anything from a spark to a complete discharge, that it would make a more versatile technique."

Kurenai grinned, as did Ino as she stood.

"Hmm, I am very impressed Hinata. I don't think even Naruto thought about using the technique in that manner."

Hinata blushed, and suddenly she was embraced in a hug by Ino, who was cheering her for getting such praise from Kurenai. Hinata's blush deepened as she realized just what part of Ino's body was pressed against her though.

* * *

When Kurenai returned at noon she found all three of the genin exhausted. Sakura may have had spectacular control, but her endurance definitely needed work.

"I've got lunch for you three." She said, removing four canteens and three bentos from her pack, as well as a fourth bento with nothing but fish in it.

"After you eat we will return to Tazuna's. I'll spend the afternoon working on taijutsu with you three."

Sakura smiled, glad for a little break. Kiba grinned, hoping he'd get to train with Naruto again. Sasuke grinned, glad to finally be getting some actual training.

* * *

**Six Hours Later**

As the members of Teams 7 and 8 entered Tazuna's house for dinner Kakashi noticed three things. One, his team looked completely exhausted and beat up, while Kurenai's team was still grinning and still had energy. Second, Naruto's clothes looked like he had gone six rounds with a caged tiger. And third, Sasuke kept glaring at Naruto.

"How did the training go?" He asked. He was sitting in a chair, reading his new copy of Icha Icha Paradise, basking in its glory. He noticed that Kiba snorted upon seeing this. Not that the young Inuzuka was any different. Kakashi happened to know that the boy had his own collection of Icha Icha books.

"It rocked sensei. Kurenai taught us to use chakra to walk up trees, and then we spent the afternoon sparring." Kiba said, grinning despite his exhaustion. Akamaru barked happily from his seat on top of Kiba's head.

"Kakashi, can I talk to you for a second? Outide." Kurenai said sternly.

Kakashi swallowed and closed his book, following her outside.

Inside, the genin could only hear muffled shouts as Kurenai tore into Kakashi about being an irresponsible teacher.

At a skittering sound Naruto turned to find a young boy staring at him. He had been too busy setting up his sentries the night before to meet the boy, so he figured now was as good a time as ever. Crouching down he held out his hand.

"Hi, I'm Naruto. What's your name?"

"Inari." The boy said hesitatingly. "Why are you guys here?"

"Well, to put it simply we are here to defeat Gato and rescue your country from his grasp."

Inari frowned.

"You won't succeed. No one ever will. Heroes always die. Always!"

Before Naruto could respond the boy turned and ran up the stairs. Naruto heard a door slam a few seconds after he disappeared.

Naruto blinked and turned to see Hinata and Ino looking at him.

"You should go after him, Naruto." Ino said. Hinata nodded her agreement.

Naruto nodded and started heading up the stairs. Behind him he could here an argument begin as Sasuke asked his teammates what the deal was with the 'dobe.'

Naruto walked down the hallway and found the door with Inari cared into it. He was about to knock when he heard crying from the other side. He paused and listened for a few seconds. Finally he heard the crying again, punctuated with a sad voice saying "Daddy!"

After a few more seconds Naruto lowered his hand and turned, walking back towards the stairs.

* * *

**Three Days and Counting…**

* * *

The next morning Kurenai lead the six genin again out to a grove of trees. This time she lead them to a grove that sat next to a small lake. As they walked Naruto mulled over what he had learned the night before from Tazuna and Tsunami.

Inari's father figure, a man who had stood up to Gato early during his oppression, had been publicly executed as an example of what Gato did to 'heroes.' Naruto vowed to make the man pay for the way he treated these people. He vowed to prove to Inari that being a hero wasn't useless.

As Kurenai had Kiba and Sasuke continue working on the tree exercise she lead Sakura over to the lake.

"This exercise is similar to the tree climbing one Sakura, but is much more difficult. This is because water is always flowing and fluctuating, and as it is not a solid substance you must constantly adapt the flow of chakra from your feet in order to keep your footing."

Kurenai performed a single hand seal and stepped out over the water, demonstrating this.

"This will be much more difficult for you, but I'm sure you'll master this quickly just like the tree climbing exercise. Since we are facing Kiri-nin this will come in handy, as it can be used to improve your traction on wet surfaces as well."

Sakura nodded and took a deep breath before stepping out onto the water. She remained upright for about three seconds before a small wave flowed under her feet and she lost her balance, dropping into the shallow water. Sakura was thankful that Ino wasn't laughing at her.

_Wait, why isn't Ino-pig laughing at me?_

Sakura stood and shook herself off and turned to see a smiling Ino standing beside Kurenai.

_Ah, because she's waiting til sensei isn't around._

"Don't worry about it Sakura," Ino said, "You are doing much better than I did the first time I tried this exercise."

Sakura blinked in confusion as Ino turned and walked further down the bank, taking a seat and bringing her hands together to make an O and beginning to focus on molding chakra.

"She is correct Sakura, that was quite impressive for your first attempt. Just keep practicing, and take a break if you start feeling exhausted."

Kurenai smiled at the pink-haired kunoichi before turning and walking over to where Hinata was standing beside a tree, her hand glowing with yellow sparks. Next to her stood Naruto, and they were controlling the electricity, controlling the flow back and forth between their two hands.

"Hinata, Naruto, what are you two working on?"

The two genin responded, but didn't take their eyes off of each other.

"Hinata had an idea sensei, and we are just experimenting. She thinks if we power the Dengeki Haaku up properly we can develop a new tag team jutsu."

Kurenai sweat dropped. Hard working students was one thing, but it seemed all her students were intent on making names for themselves before they even became chunin.

* * *

Half a mile away a grinning Naruto performed a few hand seals.

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."

The clearing was filled with four hundred Kage Bunshin.

"Ok men, lets get to work." Naruto said, grinning.

Two hundred Kage Bunshin lied up opposite one another, preparing to work on the Kaze Tate again. On the other end of the clearing the other two hundred lined up close together in pairs. As one they began sparring, both hands glowing with yellow sparks.

* * *

That afternoon Naruto again sparred with his sensei as she had the other five genin alternating partners. Naruto ignored the glares from Sasuke as he saw Naruto keeping up with Kurenai.

_She must be going easy on him. There is no way the dobe is that good._ Sasuke thought to himself. The Uchiha clan always was a bit delusional.

* * *

**Two Days and Counting…**

* * *

The next day Sasuke and Kiba finally mastered the tree climbing exercise, after they had asked Sakura for advice that is. Kurenai taught them the water walking and set them to it. Kiba just grinned when Naruto taunted him about smelling like a wet dog, but Sasuke glared when Naruto laughed the first time he fell in. He kept glaring at him as he walked off towards where his other two teammates were practicing. Ino had finally managed to form Kirigakure no Jutsu over a large area and now was working on thickening the mists. Hinata was waiting for Naruto so that they could continue working on the jutsu idea she had had. Scorch marks and cuts on numerous trees bore testament to their limited success the day before.

* * *

Half a mile a way multiple clusters of Naruto's were attempting to combine the Kaze Tate with another of his jutus. But so far, they were having no luck.

* * *

Taijutsu practice that afternoon was pretty much the same as it had been the past two days. Except Kiba got a good hit in on Sasuke while they were sparring and knocked him unconscious for a good five minutes. The Uchiha heir was not pleased when he woke up, grumbling as he refused to take a break and instead through himself back into sparring.

* * *

**One Day and Counting…**

* * *

It was the morning of their last day of training, and everyone at the lake was pushing their hardest. Kurenai had gotten them up early, hours before sunrise, and lead them to the lake. She felt that since it was the final day of their training that they needed to push themselves.

Hinata and Naruto had succeeded in maintaining the lightning arc between their hands at a distance of six feet, and were able to pass a tree between them without the jutsu collapsing. However, they seemed to be stuck at this six foot limit when it came to how far away from one another they could be.

Kurenai sighed, watching them. Even if they were technically failing to succeed in what they originally sought to do, it was still impressive that they could develop the beginnings of a modified jutsu this far in just a matter of days.

_I don't care what Hiashi thinks, his daughter must be a true genius._ She thought, smiling to herself. She turned her attention back to the two genin standing in the middle of the lake, watching as they continued to maintain their balance.

_If only we had one more day of training time, I could teach them to truly fight on water._

* * *

Half a mile away a pair of Naruto's stood back to back grinning as they were surrounded by nearly four hundred Kage Bunshin.

Both Naruto's began performing different sets of hand seals as the Kage Bunshin charged towards them. As one they shouted just before the bunshins reached them.

"Fuuton: Kaze Tate!" "Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!"

A spinning vortex of flame roared up around the two Naruto's, annihilating the attacking kage bunshins.

When the vortex dissipated, the Naruto who had performed the Katon jutsu grinned and vanished. The lone remaining Naruto collapsed backwards on the ground, staring up at the clouds as the first rays of dawn came over the horizon.

Naruto came to about an hour later to find a young effeminate man sitting nearby, with a basket of herbs in her lap. She smiled at him.

"You know, you really shouldn't fall asleep out here. You could get sick from the cold." The young man said softly.

Naruto chuckled as he sat up.

"I doubt it. I've never been sick a day in my life. Besides, I've only been laying here for about an hour probably. The sun isn't very high in the sky and dawn was just starting when I laid down."

"What were you doing out here anyways?" the young man asked.

Naruto cocked his head and grinned.

"I was bored, so while I was training I decided to try something new. I ended up burning myself out so I took a nap."

Haku nodded.

"So does that mean you are a ninja then?"

Naruto grinned again. "Yup."

Haku smiled faintly. "It's rare to see ninja here in Wave. We have no hidden village of our own afterall."

Naruto nodded.

"Yeah, my sensei told me that. So what are you doing here."

The young man seemed sad for a moment.

"My…precious person was injured. So I'm gathering herbs to make a tea to help him heal."

Naruto nodded.

"Yeah, I can understand. One of my precious people was injured too. He was fighting this really tough ninja named Zabuza. He won, but now he's had to spend the week recovering from chakra depletion."

The young man did not let any surprise show on his face. The two spent the next hour talking. They talked about the meaning of life, precious people, and having a reason to exist. But nothing truly interesting happened until Naruto stood to leave.

"You know, I've truly enjoyed our chat. I really wish things could just continue as they are right now. It's so peaceful."

Haku nodded. "I agree. But life is not always so."

Naruto smiled sadly. "Yes, that is true. And Haku?"

Haku turned to look at Naruto. "Yes?"

"Whatever the future holds, I really hope you and I don't meet on the battlefield. I would hate to have to harm someone I call friend."

Haku blanched. He knew. He knew Haku was with Zabuza, or at least suspected it. But he KNEW that Haku was a ninja.

Naruto held his gaze for a few moments before Haku smiled sadly. Naruto smiled back before turning to leave, disappearing into the upper canopy of the forest as he headed off to meet his team.

* * *

"You're back late." Zabuza said as Haku entered the room. Zabuza was staring out at the sunlight streaming through the window.

"I met someone interesting. My apologies Zabuza-sama."

Haku set his basket down and bowed in contrition. Zabuza waved him to stand upright.

"It is nothing to worry about Haku. I trust you with my life, I trust you not to betray me. You are, and always will be, my most trusted tool."

To an outsider this would have sounded weird, but to Haku, this was the closest thing to familial love he had known in a long time. He bowed again and then set about finishing the tea to help his master recover.

* * *

When Naruto, the real Naruto, dropped out of the trees by the lake two hours early Kurenai at first thought something was wrong. But when he walked over and dispelled the clone that had been working with Hinata she realized that he must have just completed what he had been working on. He had been very secretive, and all he had told her was that he wanted to experiment with combining jutsus.

Slowly she stood and walked over to her two students as Naruto chatted excitedly with Hinata. As she got closer she could finally hear what he was saying.

"I'm sure it will work Hinata. I had a bunch of clones practicing it the other day, and this morning we had a breakthrough. I just need to see if you can do it as well." Naruto said, speaking fast and excitedly.

"And just what is this that you want to see if she can do, Naruto?" Kurenai asked, standing behind him with her arms crossed.

As much as she appreciated her charges enthusiam, they clearly did not understand the dangers inherent in pushing themselves too far.

Naruto turned and grinned up at his sensei.

"I figured out how to solve the distance problem with arcing the Dengeki Haaku between two people. Its because we are only using a one way arc. There isn't enough power or control to maintain the link for more than six feet. But if you use two." And Naruto stepped back and summoned a clone. Both rapidly formed Dengeki Haaku on both hands and stepped twenty feet away from one another.

"Raiton: Dengeki Enko!" The two Naruto's cried out, thrusting their hands out.

Kurenai watched as a stream of lightning leapt from the right palms of both Naruto's, connecting to the left palm of the other. Without skipping a beat the two Naruto's turned and ran past a tree.

Where the lightning crossed the tree the sap inside superheated and literally exploded. A two foot high section of trunk literally exploded outward and the tree toppled over, sliced through by the lightning. Grinning, the two Naruto's brought their hands together and performed a few hand seals. The arcs of lightning vanished and their hands glowed yellow. They both reached down and discharged the energy into the ground. The clone dispelled itself after standing upright and grinning, and the real Naruto walked back towards his partner and embraced her in a hug.

"It was thanks to you Hinata. When you said the other day you didn't think a single Dengeki Haaku had the power to last over a distance, so I had my clones attempt it with two. It took a while, but eventually they figured out a way that worked. We just need to turn it into a circuit, like in our radios."

Hinata didn't hear a word he said, as she had fainted as soon as her crush hugged her.

* * *

That afternoon's taijutsu practice went differently than planned, and was not something any of them would soon forget.

As everyone paired off, Naruto paired up with Kiba, wanting to challenge himself by fighting two opponents at once. Of course, before either of them could throw a punch, Sasuke stepped up behind Naruto.

"Fight me." Two words, but they carried so much meaning.

Naruto let his stance drop and turned to regard the Uchiha.

"If you'd like to join Kiba and give me a third opponent to deal with that would be fine." He said after a moment.

Sasuke shook his head.

"No, not a taijutsu spar. I want a real fight with you."

Naruto snorted.

"Now why would I do that, Uchiha?" Naruto said, a little disdain in his voice at Sasuke's arrogance. "Even if I would agree to a full on fight with you, we are on a mission. It would be a dereliction of duty to have such a fight with you, particularly since we could be attacked any day now."

Sasuke glared at Naruto, clenching and unclenching his fists. Suddenly a voice spoke from behind him.

"Naruto, do you remember what the Hokage and I spoke to you about two years ago? After _that_ incident?" Kakashi said, leaning against a nearby tree.

Naruto nodded. The incident Kakashi was referring to had been when a chunin had attempted to infiltrate the Namikaze Compound in an attempt to kill him. Unlike most others though he had taken the tactic of challenging Naruto to a fight, hoping that the fight would give him the opening to kill Naruto without the interference of his guardians. That was the last mistake that Chunin had ever made.

"Good. I want you to keep that in mind as you fight Sasuke. Namikaze Naruto, Order Delta Seven is hereby rescinded for the next ten minutes. Have fun."

With that Kakashi shunshined away. Everyone had gathered now, and they all stared at Naruto in confusion, all but Kurenai, who was frowning.

"Naruto, what the hell is this Order Delta Seven Kakashi was talking about?!" Kiba asked loudly, more than a tad bit annoyed that Sasuke had interfered with his spar.

Naruto sighed and then slipped off his jacket handing it to Hinata. As he began divesting himself of most of his equipment he sent Kurenai a look, pleading with her to explain.

Sighing, Kurenai spoke up. "Order Delta Seven is the seventh in a set of special directives with regards to Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto. It is designed to protect other Konoha shinobi from the possibility of death while fighting Naruto."

Everyone looked at Kurenai in confusion. Sasuke snorted.

"What do you mean the possibility of death while fighting him? I'm going to beat the dobe down so hard he wont walk for a month."

If looks could kill, the looks Hinata and Ino were sending Sasuke would have obliterated him.

"I was only informed of these directives when Naruto was assigned to my squad. Order Delta Seven states that unless the order is otherwise rescinded by one of those given the authorization to do so, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto is forbidden to have anything more than a standard taijutsu spar with any Konoha-nin of below Chunin rank."

Sasuke glared at Naruto.

"So does that mean since Kakashi rescinded it that I can fight him?" He asked, growing impatient. Kakashi had said it was only for ten minutes.

"Yes, that is precisely what it means." Naruto's voice was a low growl as he handed his sunglasses to Ino and turned around.

Naruto had divested himself of almost all his equipment. He no stood before Sasuke wearing a white shirt and black pants, his hitai-ate firmly tied over his head wrap, his boots, and his fingerless gloves. He held two of his tri-pronged kunai in his hands, and had another four attached to his hip.

"No holds barred, if your opponent yields or loses consciousness you cease attacking immediately, and Kurenai sensei can step in and end the fight at any time. Agreed?" Naruto asked his opponent as he took a fighting stance.

Sasuke grinned arrogantly as he took his own stance. "The terms are acceptable."

Naruto grinned. Those watching noticed that his eyes had suddenly become a darker shade, a deep purple, and they had elongated slightly.

"Kurenai-sensei, announce the start, if you would."

Kurenai sighed.

_Please show some control Naruto. I'll be the one who has to patch the idiot Uchiha up if you break him._ Kurenai thought to herself.

"Ready…Fight."

Naruto's combat stance became a crouch as he suddenly began radiating a purplish chakra from his hands and feet. Crouched as he was he was able to use both his hands and feet for propulsion. Sasuke leapt backwards, tossing kunai at him, but he frowned as Naruto appeared to vanish just before the kunai hit him.

"Ten."

Sasuke heard Naruto's deep growling voice from behind his head before a punch slammed into his pack, sending him flying towards the ground.

"Nine."

Naruto appeared in front of Sasuke. Sasuke attempted to block the punch but Naruto was too fast for him, and his open palm strike threw Sasuke backwards.

"Eight." "Seven." "Six."

Sasuke heard Naruto's voice come from three different directions as three Kage Bunshin kicked him, slamming him into the air.

_Gah! When did he have the chance to make those?_ Sasuke thought as he flew into the air.

"Five." And Sasuke took a blow to the side, causing him to spin.

"Four." And Sasuke took a second blow to the same spot.

"Three." Sasuke took a blow to the legs, flipping him over and so his body horizontal to the ground.

"Two." Sasuke received a kick to the chest, redirecting his momentum downward.

"One." Naruto watched from beside his two teammates as his final clone added one last kick to Sasuke's side, accelerating the spin before he hit the ground. But rather than hit the ground Sasuke was caught by a squad of Kage Bunshin.

Naruto looked towards Kurenai and nodded. She sighed.

_The Uchiha was given every chance to back out. I just hope he learns from this little incident._

"The fight is over. Uzumaki Naruto is the winner."

An enraged Sasuke tried to fight his way out of the group of clones surrounding him.

"What do you mean he's the winner!? I'm not beaten yet!" He yelled as he walked towards Kurenai.

"Yes, Uchiha, you are. Naruto understands that we have a mission to perform, so he went easy on you, and caught you rather than allowing the final blow to be dealt. He knew that if he incapacitated you for the fight tomorrow that I would personally select his punishment, and I've learned from the best."

_Thank you Anko._

Kurenai saw Naruto, whose eyes had returned to their normal blue color, swallow at her covert reference to Anko's punishment methods.

Sasuke turned to glare at Naruto, but was surprised to find Naruto standing before him holding his hand out towards him.

"Despite what you might think Sasuke, I have no quarrel with you. It's just that I, like those Uchiha who awaken the Sharingan, was born with something that gives me an unfair advantage. But you, like myself, are the last of your clan, and quite strong from what Kakashi nii-san tells me. I'd certainly like a chance to train with you once we get back to Konoha. Perhaps I can teach you some of my taijutsu, and my techniques for improving endurance. And maybe you can help me improve my use of Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu. Kakashi nii-san tells me you are an expert with it."

Uchiha Sasuke blinked.

"You…you want to be friends with me? Wait, how do you know the Goukakyu? I knew it, you are just trying to make me look bad!" Sasuke yelled. Sakura seconded this opinion. Thankfully for all involved it was Ino who stepped in to intervene.

"For your information, Uchi_ha_, our sensei gave Naruto a scroll with it to learn since one of his subtypes is fire. Naruto didn't even know that you knew the technique until we told him."

Sasuke blinked and stepped back. He had recognized Ino as one of the girls who had used to hang all over him at the Academy, but since she showed up with Team 8 she hadn't once tried to get his attention. In fact, quite the opposite. Ino had actually flat out ignored the Uchiha heir when he subtly tried to invite her to eat lunch with him, as she was one of the most skilled kunoichi to come out of his year, and Sasuke had come to realize that true vengeance on his brother would be to make the clan he had destroyed strong again and surpass his brother that way.

"Oh." That was all Sasuke said.

After a moment Sasuke's smirk returned and he stepped forward, clasping Naruto's hand in his own.

"Maybe you aren't so useless after all, 'dobe.'" Even though he was still calling Naruto that, Sasuke had an honest grin on his face.

"And maybe you aren't so arrogant after all, 'teme.'" Naruto's grin was just as big as Sasuke's was.

Uchiha Sasuke had become the second member of the 'I Had Some Sense Beat Into Me By Naruto Club."

* * *

**Gato's Mansion**

Zabuza stood in front of the window as he watched the sun set. He had removed the bandages from his wounds and the newly healed scars stood out against the rest of his skin.

"Tomorrow, Sharingan Kakashi." He said quietly. "Tomorrow."

In the corner of the room Haku prepared some senbon, and said a little prayer for his new friend.

_Naruto. May Kami guide you to see another day._

* * *

**Zero Days…**

* * *

AN: Ok folks, as promised, Chapter 14 is up before Friday. Well before Frday. This is officially the fastest chapter I have written for this story, and at around seven thousand words it is a doozy. For those who missed the announcement, I am also working on a second Naruto fic called Konoha's Golden Viper. Neither fic will be ignored in favor of the other. Instead, I will attempt to alternate writing chapters for one or the other, though if inspiration hits I won't ignore it.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it. The next chapter will hopefully be up sometime before the end of the weekend, and I also can't wait to write that one, but I must write another chapter or two for Golden Viper first. Needless to say, next chapter I finally get to showcase Team 8 as they deserve to be shown. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 15: Conflict in the Wave.

**Techniques: **Enjoy the list. there was one other technique briefly displayed, but you'll have to wait to find out all the details.

**Jyuu ni Ichi no Rendan**--_Ten to One Barrage/_ While not technically a jutsu, this technique requires the use of Kage Bunshin or an equivalent in order to perform. Ten hits, with the final plowing the opponent into the ground while they are spinning, this technique deals intense physical damage. Based largely on the goken strikes used by Rock Lee and Might Guy, with a little bit of Naruto's personal Kitsune-style thrown in, it is a dangerous combo for an opponent to get caught by. (High C-Class Taijutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)

**Raiton: Dengeki Enko**--_Lightning Release: Shocking Arc/_ This jutsu requires two users to perform. Both users first perform Raiton: Dengeki Haaku on both of their hands before as preparation. They then face one another and perform the half hand seals for release and receiving of this jutsu. This causes lightning to arc from the right palm of the user to the left palm of the receiver. When complete, this forms a circuit that can be maintained up to twenty feet in distance. The strength of the lightning is strong enough that it continues to pass through solid obstacles, so the two users can run with targets between them and cut them in half. The jutsu is easy to dodge, and requires a lot of chakra, but if the enemy can be surprised by it it makes an effective weapon. (Very High C-Class to Low B-Class)

**Suiton: Shuukou**--_Water Release: Condense/_ This jutsu allows the wielder to saturate the air with moisture. It is often used a precursor for more powerful Suiton jutsus. Unlike Kirigakure, the focus is on humidity not the formation of clouds, and it is much less noticeable when used. (E-Class Ninjutsu)

**Review Responses**

landoffire - I hope you enjoyed the fight scene. Sorry it was so short, but I needed to get across to both the readers and the Uchiha just how strong Naruto really is. Don't worry, there is a fight (or two) coming next chapter, and I am going to be spending a while getting them just right.

Kakuzu's.Emo.Ninja.Fangirl - At least one member will. There are other events that are about to occur as well.

Jack512 - Haha, well, I'm glad you are enjoying my story. and here you are, an update two days ahead of schedule.


	15. Chapter 15: Battle in the Wave

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 15: Conflict in the Wave

The sun rose to reveal a cloudless and fogless sky on the fifth day since Team 8 arrived in the Wave. As the birds sang their morning chorus the two squads of Konoha shinobi at Tazuna's house were busy in preparation for the day.

Tazuna and his workers were finally going to return to working on the bridge, guarded by Kakashi and Team 7.

Team 8 was going to guard Tazuna's house and family, while Naruto's Kage Bunshin performed a sweep through the Wave in an attempt to locate Zabuza and his assistant. Naruto had chosen not to inform his teammates or sensei about meeting Haku.

As Team 7 set out, escorting Tazuna to the bridge, Team 8 was scattered around the house. Hinata was assisting Tsunami with the dishes while Ino helped tidy up the house. Naruto sat on top of the house while his clones performed their search, and Kurenai was out laying traps in the forest around the house.

The relative peace didn't last long though, as Team 8 received some unexpected and very unwelcome company barely half an hour after Team 7 left.

"Shit!" Naruto's shouted expletive instantly alerted his entire team. By the time he reached the ground his teammates and sensei had all exited the house and were on full alert.

"What happened Naruto?" Kurenai asked, scanning the tree line for threats.

"Three of my clones on the northern perimeter were just dispelled. They didn't even sense anything-SHIT! Three more clones just disappeared. But one of them caught sight of an opponent. It looked like a hunter-nin. I'd guess Kirigakure from it's mask."

Naruto growled and crouched as Hinata activated her Byakugan. Kurenai and Ino drew their kunai and kept on guard.

"Sensei, eight ninja approaching from directly north. Naruto was correct, they are Kirigakure hunter-nin."

Kurenai frowned. Kirigakure hunter-nin here could mean one of two things, and only one of them good. Either they were here to kill Momochi Zabuza and burn his body, or they were here after Team 8 after they killed two squads of Kirigakure ninja on their last mission.

Judging by the fact that they had annihilated Naruto's clones on sight and were making a beeline straight for Team 8, Kurenai was willing to bet her entire life savings it was the latter.

Kurenai noticed that Naruto had slipped his sunglasses on and had secreted several of his special kunai in his sleeves. Kurenai also noted that Naruto seemed to be loaded down with far more of the tri-tipped kunai than she remembered him even having, as there were chains of them dangling off him and strapped around his body.

Suddenly a hail of senbon came flying out of the trees, scattering the members of Team 8.

Ino rolled as she dodged and came up beside Hinata. The two kunoichi instantly found themselves dodging a nearly continuous stream of senbon raining down on them from three enemy ninja. They were quickly forced to take refuge behind a tree, though that protection would only last moments before the enemy could reposition themselves for a renewed attack.

Meanwhile the remaining five ninja were attempting to separate Naruto and Kurenai. While three of them kept a continuous hail of senbon raining down on their targets the other two stayed back. Both began performing a series of hand seals.

"Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu!" The first shouted out as he finished his hand seals.

The clearing and the trees around it instantly became covered with a thick mist.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan no Jutsu!" The second shouted out.

Drawing on the supersaturated water in the air she formed a large dragon of water, sending it shooting towards Naruto and Kurenai, causing them to be split up as well.

With a few hand signals the five hunter-nins split up, two drawing katanas and moving in on Kurenai, the other three circling Naruto and preparing to strike.

In the mists, none could see the evil smirk on Naruto's face as the fools played right into his hands.

The three Kirigakure ninja attacked the stationary Naruto as one, their swords slicing him into three pieces, right before he exploded in a flash of light and a rush of fire. Around the Kirigakure ninjas three hundred identical voices cried out and the mists were ripped away by wind.

"Fuuton: Kaze Tate!"

As the three Kirigakure ninja rushed Naruto none of them had noticed the sudden lack of tri-tipped kunai on his body. Nor had they noticed the hundreds of tri-tipped kunai scattered across the battlefield. Somewhere in the nine hells a demon was laughing, anticipating his newest playthings.

As the mists protecting them vanished and they were tossed to the ground by the explosion, the three hunter-nin, along with the rest of their team and Team 8, were greeted with the sight of over four hundred Naruto's, all surrounded by spinning vortexes of wind and purple chakra.

As one they spoke.

"You attack me and my precious people. You seek to kill us or worse. For that there can be only one sentence."

All four hundred Naruto's crouched. One remained standing and instead removed his sunglasses, revealing eyes slightly elongated and a deep purple in color.

"**Death.**" He said, snapping his fingers. As one the Kage Bunshin appeared to vanish, reappearing a moment later as an endless flow of Naruto's pounded the first three Kiri-nin into unconsciousness.

Kurenai, hard pressed to avoid her two opponent's strikes, had taken a katana strike to her left leg. When the mists were cleared by Naruto's unorthdox use of the Kaze Tate she was able to use the momentary distraction to catch them in Magen: Jubaku Satsu. She didn't waste any time dispatching them with kunai slashes to the throat as they struggled to free themselves from the "trees" they suddenly found themselves ensnared by.

A sudden pair of screams caused Kurenai to spin around. What she saw nearly scared her to death. Hinata was laying on the ground unmoving, senbon sticking out of her. Beside her Ino sat slumped against a tree, senbon practically covering both of her arms. Before Kurenai could react to protect her students though she heard another scream.

This one was an angry scream.

This one was a primal scream.

This one was the last thing any of the remaining three Kiri-nin ever heard.

Before Kurenai could blink a single purple blur shot across her vision into the upper branches of a tree. There was a gurgling cry and one of the enemy fell from the tree, his neck cut. Before the body could even reach the ground the purple blur had launched itself into two more trees and repeated the procedure.

Kurenai checked behind her to be sure that the three Naruto's clones had taken out were still down. She needn't have worried, as the three were already bound tightly and under the watch of about half of the clones, the other half were running past her towards the two fallen kunoichi.

Kurenai turned and shunshined to the two girls, immediately checking their pulses. Finding them slow but steady she sighed in relief before she began the delicate task of removing the senbon needles stuck in both girls.

Behind her she heard the heavy sounds as Naruto dropped the bodies of his fallen opponents in a pile.

"Kurenai-sensei?" Naruto asked from behind her, hesitatingly. "Are they going to survive?"

Kurenai turned to find Naruto on the edge of tears as the raging fire of purple chakra around him dissipated. It shocked her, as Naruto had seemed so together and confident during the actual fight.

Kurenai sent Naruto a comforting smile before replying.

"They should be ok Naruto, once I get all these senbon removed. Do you think you could have some of your clones gather the medical supplies?"

Naruto didn't even respond as about fourty of his clones instantly began running towards the house, fighting to be first to get the supplies. Another forty spread out to the tree line, and Kurenai assumed that Naruto was taking it upon himself to set up a perimeter guard.

The real Naruto on the other hand dropped to his knees beside his two fallen teammates, barely restrained tears in his eyes as he reached out to grab Ino carefully.

Naruto's hands were an inch away from Ino when a pained sounding howl echoed faintly through the trees.

* * *

As Team 7 got closer to the bridge they encountered an early morning fog. None of them paid it much mind after Tazuna explained that it was always foggy near the shore in the early morning.

"This is boring! How come we are on babysitting duty while Team 8 hunts for the enemy?" Kiba whined. It was bad enough that his sensei hadn't taught them anything in the past month and a half, and now he was stuck on babysitting duty.

Not for the first time, Inuzuka Kiba found himself wishing he had been assigned to a team with Naruto and Hinata instead of with the fangirl Haruno and the playboy Uchiha.

When they reached the bridge they started walking out onto it, but Kakashi stopped them all after they had been walking for about a minute. The fog had gotten thicker, and it was suspiciously quiet.

"Tazuna, shouldn't your men already be working on the bridge?" he asked as he scanned for any sign of a chakra signature.

"Yes, they shou-"

Tazuna's comment was cut off as the mists cleared a little, revealing there to be dead bodies scattered along the length of the bridge.

Everyone stared in shock. Tazuna was the first to move, rushing to the side of one man who was still alive.

"What the hell happened here!" He yelled as he cradled the man's head.

"They were **COUGH** monsters." The man said faintly, coughing up some blood before losing consciousness again.

Suddenly the mists began to close in on them again.

"Shit." Kiba muttered as Team 7 surrounded Tazuna with their backs to him.

_It looks like he is back…and likely fully recovered._ Kakashi thought as he scanned for the target.

"I see you brought the children with you." Zabuza's voice echoed from the mist. "For your sake I hope they aren't as pathetically weak as last time."

Sasuke frowned at that comment.

Suddenly twelve copies of Zabuza appeared around Team 7, preparing to strike.

"Sasuke!" Kakashi called out as he performed a series of hand seals.

Sasuke reacted immediately, his thrown kunai dispersing the twelve mizu bunshins in an instant.

"Impressive." Zabuza's voice came from the mist. "The boy was able to see through my mizu bunshins. Maybe he is worth my time after all."

"No Zabuza, your fight is with me." Kakashi said, his mood dark as he moved between his students and Zabuza. "Sakura, Kiba, Sasuke, protect Tazuna. I'll protect you. I'll never let my teammates die."

Zabuza smirked under his bandages.

"Foolish sentiments from a foolish ninja. Haku, kill them all. I'll deal with Sharingan Kakashi myself."

There was a shimmer of water beside the real Zabuza and suddenly the 'hunter-nin' who had 'killed' the Demon of the Mist rose out of it. Behind his mask Haku silently thanked Kami that his friend Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

"Crap." Kakashi exclaimed. "Sasuke, Kiba, deal with Haku."

Kakashi prepared to attack Zabuza when his eyes suddenly widened in surprise as Zabuza vanished and reappeared beside him, his blade cleaning bisecting Kakashi's torso.

The genin of Team 7 cried out in shock and fear before Kakashi collapsed into a puddle of water.

_Mizu bunshin?! He managed to copy that even through the mist?!_ Zabuza thought.

Sasuke tried to rush to assist his sensei as he and Zabuza began a full out flight, but was blocked by Haku, who seemed to disappear and reappear, blocking the Uchiha's path.

"Hyoton." He said flatly, holding his palm out flat towards his opponent.

A spike of ice appeared, was sent hurtling towards Sasuke, split into a hundred senbonr needles formed from ice, and slammed into a log. At the last second Uchiha Sasuke had performed a Kawarimi with a piece of the timber for building the bridge.

Behind his mask Haku frowned. It looked like he was going to have to get serious. He saw the other boy and his dog rushing to assist Sasuke. He waited until the two were close together and then unveiled his trap.

"Makyō Hyōshō."

Large mirrors of ice formed around the genin, trapping them inside a dome. Outside the dome Haku approached the nearest of the mirrors while speaking in a steady voice.

"You have no chance. Within this dome I can move from mirror to mirror at such incredible speeds that you will never be able to keep up. Give up now and your lives may be spared."

When the only response was some very inventive cursing by Sasuke and Kiba and an extremely angry sounding howl from Akamaru Haku sighed behind his mask before stepping forward and disappearing into the ice mirror.

Within the dome of ice Haku's senbon storm began.

* * *

The fight between Zabuza and Kakashi was a stale mate, with neither ninja managing to gain the upper hand. Both shinobi sported several new cuts and bruises, but no substantial damage had been done to either party.

Haku on the other hand had subjugated the two genin at his disposal in a matter of minutes. He had managed to take down Kiba quickly, disabling first his legs, then his arms, and then finally sending a barrage of senbon to finish him off.

It was then that he managed to take down Sasuke.

Uchiha Sasuke, arrogant bastard that he was, had stepped in the way of the senbon attack, taking them straight on with his back. Prior to this day no one would ever have expected Sasuke to sacrifice himself to save a teammate, yet here he was, doing just that.

As Sasuke collapsed Akamaru sniffed at the two downed ninjas before letting out a pained howl as Haku caught him in the foot with a senbon needle.

Haku stared down with no emotion as he prepared to send one final storm of needles and finish the two ninja and the nin-dog off once and for all.

* * *

The moment Naruto had heard the painful howl of Akamaru he stiffened.

"No…" He whispered, his entire body stiff and shaking at the same time.

"Naruto, what are you go-"

Kurenai never finished her sentence as Naruto's eyes elongated slightly and turned purple as a tiny swirl of red entered them. First his hands and then his feet began to radiate purple chakra before he concentrated it. Slowly the purple glow grew, covering his arms, then his legs, and finally his entire body.

Crouching slightly Naruto turned towards the direction of the bridge, and where the howl had come from.

"T**h**e**y** n**e**e**d** **m**y **h**e**l**p** s**e**n**s**e**i**. I **m**u**s**t **g**o. **B**e**s**i**d**e**s**, I **k**n**o**w **t**h**e **c**o**u**n**c**i**l **o**r**d**e**r**e**d **y**o**u **t**o **b**r**i**n**g **t**h**e** U**c**h**i**h**a **b**a**c**k **a**l**i**v**e."

Kurenai shuddered slightly in spite of herself as Naruto's voice seemed to fluctuate from normal to a deep growling tongue.

"Naruto, you don't know what you are getting in to. Stay here and stabilize these two, I'll go and hel-"

Again Kurenai was unable to finish, as suddenly Naruto shot off towards the bridge, his passage leaving a visible trail of purple chakra in the air. Kurenai didn't miss the way plants seemed to droop at Naruto's passing.

All around her, three hundred clones of Naruto set off in Naruto's wake, though much slower as they did not possess the purple chakra.

As he dashed towards the bridge, moving at near supersonic speeds, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto mentally prepared himself for what would be the hardest battle of his life.

_**Now remember Kit, you can't perform jutsus in this form, so you'll have to rely on your fighting skills. And whatever you do, do not draw on more of my power than this.**_

_Why not? What if I need more power in order to save my friends, in order to defeat the enemy?_

_**Kit, if you draw on anymore than this you'll be running on my chakra alone. Yours will be drawn by the seal to power it as you draw on my energies. And the problem is, drawing on my energies will expose you to the effect of whatever drives me and my kind insane on your world. You will become a berserker, and it will be hard to calm you down. I do not know how rational you will be.**_

_I don't care. They need me. If I have to go into a berserker state, I will. I am the son of the Yondaime Hokage. I AM strong enough to handle this._

The Kyuubi no Kitsune was notably silent after this last remark, preparing herself in order to aid Naruto in battle.

When Naruto reached the bridge he didn't even hesitate to dive straight into the mists. Ahead of him he could smell cold water, the stench of fear from Sakura and Tazuna, the intensity of focus radiating off of Kakashi and Zabuza along with hints of blood, the boy from the forest, his scent commingled with the ice, and finally a close knit set of sents, Kiba and Akamaru, as well as the Uchiha. None of those scents were fluctuating or moving.

Naruto's eyes narrowed as a dome of ice came into view. Without even hesitating Naruto focused his chakra into his arms, keeping it from radiating out from him, and dove at the nearest panel of ice, his hands extended and surrounded by a purple glow.

CRASH

Namikaze Naruto ripped through the ice mirror, which had resisted Uchiha Katon skills and Inuzuka Gatsūga with equal indifference.

Haku stared in utter surprise as the boy from the forest rolled and came to his feet in a crouch, growling. Haku reacted without hesitation though, as he was a tool, Zabuza's tool, and he would not fail his master.

_No!_ Naruto's eyes widened as he was greeted with the sight of Kiba, Sasuke, and Akamaru laying on the ground unmoving, riddled with senbon.

"You-you-you MONSTER!! YOU KILLED THEM!!"

Haku paused halfway through exiting a mirror as waves of killer intent radiated off Naruto as flames of purple chakra surrounded him.

"I WILL **KILL YOU!**"

Haku shuddered involuntarily as the flames of chakra around Naruto suddenly changed from purple to a dark red as spirals of red chakra roared out of him, spiking the flames and killer intent to even greater heights.

As he watched Naruto's appearance changed. The odd whisker-like scars on his face deepened and elongated. Naruto's fingers and nails grew, becoming more like claws. Naruto's canines grew, and his pupils elongated fully into slits like a fox's as his eyes turned from purple to red.

Naruto crouched on all fours, raised on the tips of his toes and his finger tips. The red chakra flames around him spiraled above him, forming the head of the nine tail demon fox for a moment before crashing back down around him. When the flames settled Naruto was surrounded by a cloak of red chakra in the shape of a fox with one tail. His arms and legs were surrounded by the chakra, forming claws around his hands and feet.

With a cry of rage Naruto dashed towards Haku. Haku managed to jump to another mirror, but Naruto shattered the one Haku had previously been occupying with a swipe of a chakra claw. Growling he turned and leapt after Haku.

Haku's heart pounded as he realized he was going to very rapidly run out mirrors if he didn't find a way to stop Naruto quick.

* * *

Several hundred feet away Kakashi and Zabuza had been facing off, metaphorically speaking, when they felt the rise of Naruto's youki and killer intent.

_What the hell is that!?_ Zabuza thought, worried. _No, it doesn't feel like him._

_This chakra…No! It can't be. Is the seal weakening? _Kakashi thought, also worried. _No, the seal is still holding. In fact it's stronger than usual. What the hell is going on. Either way, I don't have much time._

Kakashi withdrew a scroll and dabbed his thumb in the blood running from the wound in his chest. He flipped the scroll and as he unrolled it he ran his thumb along it with the blood.

"Zabuza…can you hear me…neither of us has time to waste…this might not suit your style…but let's end the fun…AND FINISH THIS NOW!"

"Heh. Sounds interesting. Show me what you've got Kakashi."

* * *

Back in the ice dome Naruto paused after destroying his fifth panel in a row. Growling he crouched near the center of the dome.

"**Enough of this. Haku, I could forgive you for attacking my friends, I could forgive you for harming them. But I cannot forgive you for killing them**."

Naruto brought his hands together and just let the chakra flow out of him.

CRASH

Haku was thrown clear of the dome as the remaining mirrors all shattered under the assault from Naruto's red chakra. As he slowly climbed to his feet his shattered mask dropped, revealing his face. He watched unmoving as Naruto stalked towards him.

As he came Naruto prepared to strike, when suddenly memories of his discussion with Haku resurfaced, tempering his rage. The chakra cloak around him vanished, though his body still remained transformed.

"I killed your friends. Aren't you going to kill me?" Haku asked.

Naruto stood upright, his eyes becoming a soft purple as his pupils reverted to nearly normal, his animalistic features fading.

"No. While in that form my senses are so far beyond human it scares even me sometimes. During the fight, I was able to sense that they are unconscious not dead. That is the only reason your head has not yet been separated from your body. But I also sensed something in you. You are like me. Hated for what you were born as, never even given a choice in the matter."

Haku nodded.

"That is true. My parents are dead because of what I am. And my life of hardship has taught me the painful truth of the world," Haku said, "that I am a person who is unwanted."

Naruto growled.

"That's not true. Everyone in this world is wanted."

"Until Zabuza no one wanted me. The world tried to kill me, one way or another, until finally I fought back. But Zabuza, he wanted me, and so I am his tool. I will always serve Zabuza-sama, even if it means my death."

"You are a fool, but someday I am sure you will see the truth."

Naruto sighed and then the purple chakra flared around his hands and feet. Faster than Haku could see Naruto moved, delivering a series of blow to pressure points that his mother had taught him.

Haku slumped to the ground, unconscious.

"Fuuton: Kaze Tate!" Three hundred identical voices rang out in near synchrony. A massive whirl of wind rose up, blowing the mist away.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried out as the corpse of her beloved Sasuke-kun was revealed.

"What!?" Zabuza exclaimed, surprised by the sight of three hundred copies of a ninja he hadn't seen during the previous fight surrounding him.

_How did they surround me? I couldn't even sense them._ He thought, worried that this was a sign that there were heavy reinforcements coming.

Zabuza's distraction was tiny, but it was enough for Kakashi's attack to succeed. His three nin-dogs broke through from below, latching onto Zabuza with their jaws and pinning him in place.

"Zabuza. Your future," Kakashi said before he opened his left eye, revealing his spinning Sharingan, "is death."

Kakashi brought his right hand up and focused his chakra in it.

"RAIKIRI!!"

Kakashi ran towards Zabuza, who was unable to move due to the damage inflicted by the nin-dogs.

Just as Kakashi was about to ram the blade of lightning through Zabuza his arm was caught by a glowing purple hand, just inches away from Zabuza's chest. Both shinobi blinked as Naruto stood there, his glowing purple hand strong enough to keep the jounin from completing the attack.

"No, Kakashi. Zabuza is already weak, and he will die from his wounds. But before that, he might want to have some satisfaction from the fat pig over there."

As Kakashi looked beyond Zabuza to where the mist was fading away at the end of the bridge he noticed a decided lack of Naruto clones around them. At the end of the bridge, the corrupt businessman Gatou stood at the head of a swarm of several hundred mercenaries.

"Gatou, why are you here../? and what's with all these men!?"

"Hehehe, the plan has changed….well actually, I planned to do this from the beginning. Zabuza I'm going to have you killed here." Gatou said, grinning.

"What?!" Zabuza exclaimed, his arms limp thanks to Kakashi's nin-dogs' attacks.

"I never planned on paying you any money. Hiring a normal ninja from the village is expensive and they may betray me…so I get you missing-nins who are easy to take care of afterwards. I have the ninjas kill each other and once they're weakened I kill them off with numbers…it doesn't cost me anything, good plan don't you think?"

Naruto fought to keep a sadistic grin from forming on his face,

"The only problem in the plan was you…Zabuza." Gatou continued. "The Demon of the Hidden mist? What a joke, if you ask me…hehe, you're just a…cute ittle baby devil. We can easily kill you now!!"

Gatou's last statement ws pun ctuated by cheers from the rough-looking mercenaries behind them.

"Zabuza." Naruto said quietly, stepping up next to the man. "Your job is officially defunct, which means that we have no more quarrel with you. Would you like to do the honors of killing Gatou?"

Zabuza looked at Naruto, sizing him up. Finally he spoke.

"I like you kid. You've got fire. And ambition." Zabuza looked back at Gatou, who began slowly taking a few steps back as he realized the two groups of ninja were no longer fighting one another. "Give me a kunai in my mouth and I'll gut that slimy pig."

Naruto grinned and drew one of his tri-tipped kunai.

"Then may the spirit of Konoha's Yellow Flash guide you this day."

He placed the kunai so Zabuza could bite it, taking it in his mouth so he could use it, since his arms were no longer working.

"Gatou is yours, Zabuza, Demon of the Hidden Mist. I'll take care of the insects."

"Naruto. Haku, did you kill him?" Zabuza asked through clench teeth.

"No."

Zabuza nodded.

"Good. Do not judge him by my example. He was a good tool…no, a good son. My only hope now is that he can be redeemed from my mistakes."

Naruto crouched, pulsing his chakra through his feet in a specific pattern. As he and Zabuza charged towards the enemies there was a massive sound of shifting earth, and all of Gatou's mercenaries became victims of Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu, buried in the earth as if awaiting their funerals.

As Zabuza made a beeline for the terrifying and fleeing Gatou Naruto and three hundred of his clones stood over the heads of their enemies.

"You, you are all scum. Even if I let you live this day, you will live to do nothing other than rape and pillage. Give me one good reason why I should not kill you were you lie, buried in the earth."

As if on cue one of the clones Naruto had left with Kurenai and his teammates sent his memories to Naruto as it dispelled. Naruto witnessed Hinata and Ino limping back to the house with their sensei, all three collapsing into chairs in the kitchen. He watched two mercenaries break down the door, marching into the kitchen and taking Inari and Tsunami hostage. And he watched as two clones he had hidden as kunai on the two civilians gutted the two mercenaries like fish.

"Nevermind. Too late."

As one Naruto and his clones channeled chakra into their feet. It was a trick Naruto had discovered while training during rainy weather. It's original intention was merely to reorder the structure of earth in wet or muddy environments to create a stable footing. Now he used it for a decidedly more lethal purpose.

As Zabuza reached Gatou and tore his throat out with the kunai, three hundred and one copies of Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto stomped on the heads of the mercenaries. The molding the chakra caused on the earth was more than strong enough to crush their heads.

Naruto dismissed the clones and turned stalking back towards Team 7 as Zabuza collapsed to the ground on his back. After a few steps Naruto vanished in a blur of purple, reappearing a moment later with Haku held in his arms. He set the boy upright and hit several pressure points as he did so. Haku came to standing over the fallen body of Zabuza.

"Zabuza-sama!" he cried out as he kneeled by Zabuza, cradling.

"Haku…you were…never just a tool to me…live well…my son…"

Haku's cries of anguish reached the heaven that day as his adopted father died in his arms.

Naruto turned, prepared to head back to Tazuna's house to check on his teammates, but came face to face with Kakashi instead.

"Naruto, I saw what you did there. It has me concerned."

Naruto knew Kakashi was not just referring to taking out the mercenaries.

"They deserved to die Kakashi. For all the pain and suffering they have caused. For all the pain and suffering they would have caused had I let them live."

Kakashi crossed his arms, his sharingan once again hidden behind his hitai-ate.

"You know that wasn't what I meant, Naruto."

Naruto looked Kakashi in the eye, his face showing no emotion. Finally, after several moments that felt like an eternity to the two shinobi, Naruto spoke.

"Do not be concerned with that, Hatake Kakashi. I am in full control of myself. There are aspects of my training that no one outside Rin, my mother, and the Hokage himself are aware of. I was merely forced to make use of one of them."

Kakashi nodded, not really believing Naruto's explanation, but choosing to wait until they were back in Konoha to inquire further. But one thing still bothered him.

Kakashi would never live down the day a genin had to save him and his entire team.

* * *

AN: And here it is. Took me a while, but I was really trying to get the chapter to flow the way I wanted. And finally, since I've truly had a chance to showcase it, I can explain the purple chakra. Read below for an explanation of what I have termed Kitsune Kata, or Fox Style. Anyways, I really hope you liked this chapter. Please remember to read and review. While I never withhold chapters due to lack of reviewing, it is a simple fact of life that getting good substantial reviews regularly boosts my confidence in my writing and my creativity. The monster that was chapter 14 was completed so quickly thanks to the response I received from just 1 chapter of my other project. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 16: Resolution in the Wave.

**Techniques** - New techniques

**Doton: Rentai**--_Earth Release: Solidarity/_ This basic chakra molding technique causes earth to compress and solidify beneath the user's feet, allowing him to maintain a solid footing in any terrain or weather. It has also been known to be used to finish off opponents stuck in the ground. (D-Class Ninjutsu)

**Kitsune Kata: Bazaaka**--_Fox Style: Berserker/_ This is not really a technique, but rather the state wherein Naruto is drawing on the demonic chakra, or youki, of the Kyuubi no Kitsune entirely. Naruto becomes a primal force, and he must battle to remain in control of his actions. If he uses too much power in this state he loses complete control and goes berserk until the power burns him out and he collapses from exhaustion. This form is also known as the tailed form, and is characterized by the formation of a red flaming chakra cloak and tails, indicating just how much of the fox's power Naruto is channeling. (S-Class Kinjutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)

**Kitsune Kata: Chakra Myaku**--_Fox Style: Chakra Pulse/_ When in Kitsune or Berserker modes, Naruto is able to produce a concentrated pulse of chakra, much like his genjutsu breaking ability. However this pulse is much stronger and more concentrated. capable of shattering much stronger jutsus. Naruto first developed this technique in battle with Momochi Haku, using it to shatter all of Haku's Demonic Ice Mirrors at once. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)

**Kitsune Kata: Onsoku Ken Ryoku**--_Fox Style: Speed and Power/_ This is the core of Kitsune Kata. Naruto draws on the demonic chakra, or youki, of the Kyuubi no Kitsune to improve his body. He massively increases his speed and strength, as well as his regeneration. While he cannot use normal jutsus while in this form, there are still several techniques that he has either developed spontaneously using the chakra molding he can perform in this state, or the rare technique that he can still make work. In this state Naruto is able to move at near the speed of sound, as well as massively increase the strength of his blows by increasing his strength with chakra. This technique is the equivalent of opening the first two of the Hachimon, and about as damaging. Naruto's healing factor does allow him to recover from this, but he still suffers some damage and pain during it. He normally toughs it out, preferring to keep this weakness hidden, even from his allies. Due to these drawbacks it is considered a kinjutsu, as even if another had the chakra capacities to perform it, without Naruto's regenerative ability they would suffer immense damage and pain. (S-Class Kinjutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)

**Review Responses** - Wherein I speak directly to my readers.

Yondaimerocks56695 - thanks.

stinkeygoat - hehe, well, hopefully this chapter satisfied your desire to see Naruto cooler.

Lord Zander and scione - That image is what gave me the idea. The comment in the story is an homage to the brilliance of that person. If anyone can tell me who made it, I would like to properly credit them, as I am considering a one-shot fic called "The I Had Some Sense Beat Into Me By Naruto Club."

Jack512 - I actually grinned when you reviewed my story, because I was doing final editing of the chapter before I put it up. As for Ino and Hinata 'attacking' Naruto. There is plenty of time before the Chunin exams, and with their sensei out of commission for a few days at least to get her leg properly repaired, they are going to have lots of free time on their hands.

Kakuzu's.Emo.Ninja.Fangirl - Yes, yes you may. All you need to do to join is be extremely stubborn, assaholic, deranged, or otherwise messed up, and then challenge Uzumaki Naruto to a fight and get your ass handed to you in a brutal blistering battle wherein no matter what you do Naruto will find a way to win.


	16. Chapter 16: Resolution in the Wave

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 16: Resolution in the Wave

As Tazuna stared around at the death that now littered the end of his great bridge Naruto stalked steadily back towards land. His eyes and features were back to normal, but his eyes did not grow with their usual brightness.

Instead, they carried a dark humor as Naruto fought the tide of the bloodlust, seeking to restrain it. The truth was he didn't want to talk to Kakashi not because Kakashi had not been informed of the full extent of his training, but because Naruto himself did not wish his nii-san to see the darkness growing in him.

Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto fought to contain it, but when the bloodlust came, he took out his anger at those stupid villagers who saw him as the demon he housed on his enemies.

He killed those mercenaries without pity or remorse, because reflected in them he saw the worst of the villagers' crimes, magnified a thousand fold.

"Sasuke-kun! You're alive!!"

Naruto heard Sakura's screech as she hugged the Uchiha as he regained consciousness. Naruto noted with disappointment that the pink-haired kunoichi did not even seem to register her other teammate's survival as Kiba rolled over and coughed up some blood.

"You ok Kiba?" Naruto asked, pausing beside the three genin. His hands were in his pockets and a few tatters of his shirt and jacket that hadn't been destroyed by senbon throws and the red chakra flames fluttered in the wind.

Kiba forced a grin and sent him a thumbs up.

"Never better, Naruto. Never better."

Naruto could tell Kiba was in pain, but he had never known his friend to willingly show weakness even to his friends. Not that he could blame him. Kiba was so much more than just human, just as Naruto's alterations thanks to the Kyuubi made him something different.

Naruto forced a grin back before continuing to walk forward.

Naruto did not notice Sasuke sitting upright and staring at him, a mixture of surprise and anger on his face.

_What is the dobe doing here?_ He thought. _Wasn't he supposed to be hunting for Zabuza? And why does he appear to have been through a battle, but has barely any scratches on him?_

Sakura was staring after Naruto as well. This was the first time she had seen him without his jacket and shirt on, and she was surprised to find a blush rising in her face as she saw Naruto's body clearly for the first time.

Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto did not rely on the Kyuubi's power as a short-cut. He came by his physical speed and strength naturally, having worked many long and hard hours in the training facilities of the Namikaze compound.

Revealed before the surprised Team 7 was not the Naruto they had met the first day at the academy, the cheery, glib newcomer who was beaten by Mizuki in less than twenty seconds and who barely passed the exam.

No, here was a figure every bit as intimidating as Kakashi at his most battle ready. Naruto's muscles, lean and firm, rippled as he moved. He did not radiate any killer intent, but he still seemed to radiate an aura of threat and focus. Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto was a true shinobi.

SHWOOSH

Naruto vanished in a swirl of leaves, causing the three genin of Team 7 to blink in surprise.

"Kakashi-sensei!!"

Sasuke turned at Sakura's exclamation to see their sensei walking towards them with a gash in his chest. While the blood flow was currently stemmed, it was clear he had bled a lot during the fight.

"Sensei, how did you manage to defeat both Zabuza and Haku?" Sasuke asked as he grumpily got to his feet.

"I didn't." Was Kakashi's calm reply. "Naruto did."

Sasuke nearly fell on his ass.

"WHAT!? How could he manage that!?" Sasuke cried out. Beside him his two teammates merely stared at Kakashi in surprise.

Kakashi sighed. "Sasuke, Naruto has a power that is his and his alone, and only he can choose to tell you what it is. By all rights he should be Chunin rank at least by now, but his mother insisted he not be allowed to take the Genin exam until he was sixteen. Apparently she has this strange notion that geniuses turn out halfway insane."

Sasuke stared at Kakashi dumbstruck as the grey-haired Jounin continued.

"It was Naruto who saved you and Kiba from Haku, and after he knocked Haku unconscious he used his Kage Bunshin to provide a distraction so I could capture Zabuza. But just as I was about to deal the finishing blow, Naruto stopped me."

"What the hell!? How could he stop you!?" Sasuke cried out angrily.

"Naruto is many times faster and stronger than most shinobi."

Sasuke glowered. "Then I will make him teach me his power."

Kakashi sighed again.

"How easily you forget yesterday's lesson Sasuke. Naruto would see you as a friend, as a comrade in arms, if you let him. But treat him like an enemy or a monster and even the Konoha Village Council won't be able to save you. Naruto is powerful, and dangerous, but only to his enemies. To his friends he lavishes friendship and affection, as well as an eagerness to help them improve themselves. What he can teach you of his abilities, you can rest assured he will, as long as you remain his friend. But the power that he wields in battle is his and his alone, and not to be trifled with. It is his gift…and his curse."

Kakashi turned and walked to where the body of Momochi Zabuza lay, held in the arms of his adopted son Haku.

He had a funeral to prepare for.

Sasuke on the other hand sat down, hard.

_Whatever this power is, if I can't have it, I'll have to make sure it will serve my interests._

Somewhere out amongst the stars, a cosmic entity watched and waited. A turning point had just been set, and she wanted to see where it would lead.

* * *

Hinata and Ino were just finishing bandaging themselves up when a sudden fwoosh of displaced air announced the arrival of the real Naruto.

Naruto's face promptly turned bright red and he screwed his eyes shut and turned around, frantically yelling "I'm sorry" over and over. Uzumaki Naruto had inadvertently shunshined back into the house while Hinata and Ino were in a state of severe undress, dealing with their wounds.

It wouldn't be the last time Naruto would see such a sight, merely the last time Hinata and Ino did not intend for him to see it.

Before the two girls could react and reassure him Naruto shunshined away again, the remnants of the bloodlust purged from his system by the flood of hormones seeing the two girls with very little in the way of clothing on had released into his system.

The two girls found him sitting down stairs a few minutes later, still blushing. When he saw them Naruto tensed, expecting them to be angry at his mistake.

Instead, the two girls walked up to him, gave him a light kiss on the cheek, and then left the room, smiling.

Naruto rubbed where they had kissed him on his cheeks, a look of confusion on his face.

* * *

The funeral was held that evening. A simple grave was dug in the woods where Naruto and Haku had first met, with a simple gravestone inscribed with Zabuza's name.

Haku, who having no other reason to live had given Kakashi his parole, laid Zabuza's body into the grave. At best he would be given a chance to prove his loyalty to Konoha and live as a ninja again. At worst, he would be interrogated by Ibiki and then allowed to live a civilian life under surveillance.

Either way, Naruto had made sure Haku understood that he would always be welcome in his home.

As Haku stood, a tear fell from his eye and alighted on Zabuza's brow. Suddenly it sparkled and grew, transforming into a single flower made of ice, a tribute to the deceased.

Naruto put a hand on Haku's shoulder and steered the crying boy to a seat as Kakashi carefully buried Zabuza.

Teams 7 and 8 stood silent vigil as Kakashi lit a small fire in Zabuza's honor. He may have been an enemy, but in the world of shinobi, there was really no difference between him and them. The only difference was Zabuza had broken the chains binding him to a village.

* * *

Teams 7 and 8 remained in the Wave for another week as Tazuna and his workers completed the bridge. Tazuna had been pleased to have the help of Naruto's Kage Bunshin, particularly since they were able to quickly clean up the mess left behind after Naruto had slaughtered Gatou's men wholesale.

While some of the villagers felt it would be fitting to leave the men buried in the bridge as a statement, both Tazuna and Naruto felt that would make them no better than the men Naruto had killed. So instead Naruto had dug a mass unmarked grave and buried the corpses there.

That was the limit of decency he would give them.

When the bridge was finally finished Team 7 and Team 8 gathered their gear and prepared to return to Konoha. The citizens of the wave had raided Gatou's mansion and taken his treasury back for the people, so Kakashi was carrying the payment for a proper A-rank mission.

Meanwhile Team 8, who had taken direct responsibility for Haku, kept an eye on his actions as they walked back. While Hinata and Ino were a little suspicious of the boy, at least until they realized he was a boy and not a girl, Kurenai had high hopes that this young man could be redeemed. She just hoped he wasn't snapped up by any of the larger clans simply on the basis of his kekkei genkai.

As Teams 8 and 7 trekked across the newly completed bridge and off into the distance Inari tugged on Tazuna's sleeve.

"Hey, Grampa. You haven't named the bridge yet."

Tazuna blinked and thought for a moment.

"I think…we shall call it, the Great Naruto Bridge."

* * *

It took them two days of steady travel to return to Konoha. When the great gates of Konoha finally came into view there were cheers from several members of the team, as well as a thoughtful look from Naruto.

Only Hinata and Ino noticed when Naruto replaced himself with a Kage Bunshin and veered off towards the Namikaze Compound. The two girls had had another talk with Naruto, and they both understood why he needed to spend some time alone.

It didn't mean they had to like it.

As the two teams reached the gates they were met by a squad of ANBU and Morino Ibiki himself, the Hokage's interrogation specialist.

When Haku looked slightly scared of the intimidating man Naruto's clone crept up beside him and whispered something in his ear.

Haku visibly relaxed and then stepped forward to be taken into custody. Kakashi handed over Zabuza's sword, Kubikiri Houchou, and then he and Kurenai led the two teams of exhausted genin towards the Hokage's Tower to be debriefed.

* * *

"Now, since Team 7 just had a C-Rank mission turn onto an A-Rank mission on them, and since Team 8 had to complete two A-Rank missions in a row, Kakashi, Kurenai, your two teams are officially off active duty until you both recover from your injuries." Hiruzen Sarutobi said, taking a puff on his pipe. "I've been informed that none of your students were injured enough to need extended medical, so I want you two to set them training exercises to keep them working while you are all recovered."

Iruka shuffled a few papers before taking over from the Hokage.

"Teams 7 and 8 will be returned to active duty only after ALL members have passed a medical exam with full health. Dismissed."

Kurenai and Kakashi stood at attention for a moment before turning and leading most of their teams out. Kurenai sighed and shook her head when Naruto instead punched himself in the gut, dispelling himself.

Back in the Hokage's office Iruka blinked and Sarutobi smiled.

Judging by his knowledge of the boy, and by the reports from both Kakashi and Kurenai, he was probably in the arms of two of the most important women in his life, crying.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was half right.

* * *

There was indeed crying in the Namikaze estates that night. But it wasn't Naruto's.

Naruto sat at a table, being hugged tightly by both Kushina and Rin. Both women had been beside themselves with worry for Naruto after the Hokage finally informed them what missions his team had been assigned. Now that Naruto was here they were refusing to let him go, and they were crying on all over them.

Naruto on the other hand was more focused on the fourty bowls of ramen stacked before him. He was very anxious to finally enjoy one of his favorite foods again.

"Mom, Rin, I'm fine, really. Kyuubi kept me safe. Now, will you PLEASE let me eat!?"

Much ramen died that night.

* * *

**Later That Evening…**

Hatake Kakashi let the door to his house close behind him as he stalked quickly to the windows, drawing all the blinds, before proceeding to a seemingly blank portion of wall.

Moving quickly he pressed his thumb to one specific point in a specific orientation. The lights in the room dimmed as a portion of the wall suddenly glowed green.

Just as suddenly as it had come the green light faded and the main lights died completely. Kakashi stepped backward in the pitch dark room, anxiously awaiting what was to happen next.

HISS

A panel in the wall reaching from floor to ceiling moved forward a few inches before swinging outward. As it did so, Kakashi was bathed in a glowing golden light.

Within the hidden chamber, illuminated by strips of orange light, was Kakashi's most precious possession. His collection of Icha Icha merchandise.

Carefully and with great care Kakashi stepped forward, cradling a golden book in his arms. Gingerly he reached out and placed it on an empty spot on the shelf in the very center of the chamber,

As if sensing its fellows, the book seemed to become infused with an orange glow.

Hatake Kakashi sat down on the floor and kneeled, praying to the glory that is Icha Icha.

* * *

It took most of the next week for Kakashi and Kurenai to fully recover from their wounds. Even after the ministrations of skilled medical ninjas, they still needed to make sure the wounds were one hundred percent repaired before they did anything too strenuous.

Kurenai spent the week catching up on her reading, as well giving her students goals to achieve in their training. She smiled one day while taking a walk when she saw her three students all meditating like she had instructed, focused on fully understanding their bodies.

Kakashi on the other hand spent the week locked in his house, basking in the glory of Icha Icha. He had the books, the graphic novel, and the movie. He even had the figurines. This was his most closely guarded secret, and perhaps the most well known secret amongst his fellow shinobi.

This of course meant that his students spent a week licking their wounds and sitting on their hands. Sakura used the time to continuously try to as Sasuke out, trying to get the image of a half naked Naruto out of her mind by focusing on her crush. Sasuke in turn did everything he could to avoid Sakura and focused on his training. This often involved finding Kiba and spending hours on end sparring until both of them collapsed.

Team 8 on the other hand had their own issues to deal with. It was four days after the returned that Hinata and Ino cornered Naruto outside a dango shop late in the afternoon.

Naruto, who had been busy chomping on a stick of dango, paused in mid-step as his exit from the shop was suddenly blocked by two of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen.

It took Naruto a whole five seconds to realize that it was Ino and Sakura, dressed up, and in Hinata's case wearing make-up. The intense look in their eyes made him swallow and instantly wonder what he had done wrong.

"Naruto, we need to talk."

Naruto wisely swallowed his last piece of dango and then wrapped an arm around both girls' waists, shunshining them away.

Nearby a red lizard crept out of a crevice near the store and scurried away down an alley.

* * *

Naruto sat on top of the Hokage's monument, watching as the sun slowly set on the horizon.

Sitting in front of him were Ino and Hinata. Naruto had been expecting this discussion, and when he saw them dressed up he knew he wasn't getting out of it this time. He just hoped they weren't going to force him to choose one of them, because he cared about them both.

"Naruto, you've realized by now I'm sure, that we both like you." Ino said, looking straight into his eyes.

"And the truth is, we both came to an agreement weeks ago, but we have been cautious in how we proceeded, as we did not want to lose you by acting too fast." Hinata continued, also gazing into Naruto's eyes.

Ino was wearing a dark purple yukata, and her hair was done up in an elaborate braided ponytail, with several purple flowers braided into it. Hinata on the other hand was wearing a light lavender yukata that hugged her figure, and had her hair done up in an elegant style, with a single lilac in it.

Naruto was finding it hard to not be distracted by their looks.

Both girls took deep breaths, obviously steeling themselves for what they were about to say. It was Ino who, after a shared look and nod from Hinata, spoke.

"We decided that we both wanted to date you, and we decided that any other girl who vied for your attentions would be treated as our enemy. We both honestly love you Naruto, and we don't want to be apart from you. Any day we don't see you is torture. Any time you are hurt, we feel it."

Ino choked up and Hinata took over.

"You don't have to say yes, if this makes you uncomfortable, but, well, we'd like to try dating you, together. I know that your position as the last Namikaze makes you subject to the clan repopulation laws, so no one will be able to complain or get you in trouble, even if we marry you someday. We both really do love you Naruto."

Whatever Naruto had been expecting, it certainly wasn't this.

Both girls leant forward, their hands settling on his as they looked at him expectantly.

Finally what they had both said finally sunk in.

"My mom is going to kill me…"

Hinata and Ino took that as a yes and tackld Naruto to the ground, alternately kissing him passionately and snuggling against him.

* * *

In a booth at Hikaru's Kushina Uzumaki sneezed and rubbed her nose. Across the table from her Anko laughed.

"Haha, someone must be talking about you Cushy."

Kushina cringed. It seemed she was never going to escape Minato's nickname for her. How the hell Anko had found out she didn't have a clue.

* * *

On a balcony above the entrance to Hikaru's a cloaked figure landed, several dead red lizards held in her hand. She unlocked a freezer, dropped them on the pile of dead lizards inside, and closed and locked it again.

Sighing, Oyama Hikaru removed her cloak and hung it on a hook as she entered her private apartment above her restaurant.

Tonight had been a close one. She had almost been caught by ANBU several times while she dealt with _his_ spies.

It might have been easier if she could inform the Hokage about the threat they posed, but her Master had been very clear. She and the other members of the Pyromancers assigned to Konoha were to stop the spies and store them in the freezers, nothing more. It wasn't safe for Konoha to know, not yet.

Hikaru would follow her orders. It didn't mean she had to like them.

* * *

AN: Well here you are, two updates in a row. Sorry its short, but I wrote this and the latest chapter of Konoha's Golden Viper at the same time, and this was just the ending point I wanted to leave off at. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, particularly since a few more hints about the mysterious Oyama Hikaru have been put in, and Naruto is finally being claimed by his two ladies. Please remember to read and review. If you are wondering what a proper review looks like, read over the reviews for Konoha's Golden Viper several of my readers there know how to review properly coughAnihilationcough. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 17: Halcyon Days.

**Review Responses** - More Fun Than a Barrel of Monkeys

jbalman - thanks

Kakuzu's.Emo.Ninja.Fangirl - you have NO idea how much self-control Naruto had to have. Remember, he had been holding the bloodlust for several minutes, at a very high level of activation

Saijiro - last and certainly least, Saijiro. Not only is your grammar, spelling, and punctuation atrocious, which is personally a greater affront to my honor than your flame itself, but you fail to recognize the very nature of this site and what it hosts. It is called FANfiction my friend. Fanfiction can be written either outside the core storyline of a series, but conforming to the existing series 100. It can be written outside the core storyline of a series with some alterations. Or, it can take the very series itself and change core elements. As this is my story, I do not need to keep everything 100 to the series. In fact, it should already be evident that numerous elements are already differing greatly. So if I decided to have Mizuki dating Hana rather than a character whose only existence was in FILLER ARCS in the anime, then I can. Now, a little advice for you. Next time you decide to flame someone, make sure you use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. To use anything else is a grievous insult. Also, never say "no offense" after you insult someone. It doesn't mitigate your crime. It only turns you into more of a douche. Now, begone with ye. I must return to my writing without the distractions of ignorant peasants like yourself. So sayeth I. So sayeth we all.


	17. Chapter 17: Halcyon Days

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 17: Halcyon Days

SLAM SMACK CRACK

The training log Naruto was pounding on cracked from the final blow Naruto dealt to it. Wiping the sweat off his brow he trudged over to wear his two teammates were sitting in the shade eating their lunches and collapsed.

'You know Naruto, you could actually rest during our lunch break rather than driving yourself into the ground." Ino said with a smile in between munching on the bento Hinata had made her.

In the month since they had made their intentions known to Naruto the three had grown even closer, and most days Hinata would proudly show off her expertise in the kitchen by supplying both of her teammates with oversized bento full of delicious food.

"Yeah yeah Ino, I know. But mom and Rin are working me harder than ever when I'm home, not to mention all those sparring sessions with Kiba and the Uchiha."

Naruto lay on his back and stared up at the clouds.

"Your mom is still angry about you getting two girlfriends at the same time, ne?" Ino asked, smiling at the blond ninja laying before her.

It was a well known secret to those who knew him that Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto had been royally reamed by his mother for being, as she put it, a 'player.'

"No, she's come to accept the fact that I'm dating the both of you. As long as it is just the both of you though."

Naruto looked at the two kunoichi as Ino and Hinata shared a look and giggled.

"Oh, don't worry about that my dear Naruto-kun." Ino said as she set her food aside and leant over Naruto.

"We aren't going to let any other girl get to you." Hinata finished as she joined Ino.

Naruto nearly passed out as his two girlfriends snuggled against him and began kissing him passionately.

* * *

Six hours later a trio of tired and hungry genin stumbled into the first restaurant they found. As luck would have it, the members of Team 10 were all there having dinner as well.

"Asuma-san, long time no see. You still smoking those awful cigarettes?" Naruto's brash statement caused Asuma to lower his head.

_Not again. What sort of prank does the gaki have planned for me this time?_ Sarutobi Asuma though to himself.

"Troublesome." Muttered Shikamaru.

Naruto shrugged and waved back as Chouji smiled and waved, and shared a respectful nod with Shino before taking a seat with his two girls. Kurenai-sensei had declined to eat with them, claiming she had some housework she needed to get done.

"So, ladies, what shall it be this evening? A little strip poker? Maybe some naked Twister? Or shall we just skip the foreplay and get right down to the main event?"

SLAM

For the umpteenth time that week, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto was introduced to Mother Earth by a double-team hit from his two girlfriends.

"Naruto you baka! We said never to mention those things in public you idiot!"

Surprisingly it was Hinata berating Naruto for his thoughtlessness this time, despite her usually deferring to Ino on that duty. For all his skill and intelligence, Naruto could be pretty clueless when it came to women.

"Itai! I'm sorry I'm sorry. Geez, you act like it's the end of the world. Its not like the neighbors haven't heard the noise from my apartment after all."

SLAM

Naruto's face was introduced to Mother Earth again. Hinata was secretly worried that too many impacts and it might permanently damage their boyfriend's handsome face, but thankfully that did not appear to be the case as Naruto stood and rubbed his face, the minor bruising already healing before their eyes.

"Ok ok, I get it. No mentioning our bedroom activities in public." He muttered as he rubbed his face.

Hinata and Ino smiled, satisfied with Naruto's promise.

At a nearby booth Shikamaru muttered something about "troublesome kunoichi" that earned him a few glares from a nearby table occupied by two female chunin.

Shikamaru didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't care.

* * *

**Somewhere in Waterfall Country**

The small clearing in the middle of the forest of ancient trees was a disaster zone. Scattered around it were the bodies of over a dozen black-garbed shinobi and as many large red lizards, several times the size of a man.

The forest floor and the trees around the clearing were riddled with damage from wind, water, fire, and earth based attacks.

There were even a few scorch marked craters that indicated the presence of lightning based attacks as well.

Walking amongst this devastation were eight figures, seven wearing hitai-ate indicating that they were from Nagareboshigakure no Sato, while one man's instead bore the kanji for 'Turtle'.

At one end of the clearing a teenage boy and a teenage girl examined the dead bodies, aided by two large jungle cats, a jaguar and a panther, as well as two small otters. Nearby a Jounin garbed in reds and blacks tended to the wounds of another young woman who was dressed entirely in black, with the exception of several small spherical crystals of various colors she wore inset into her bracers.

At the other end of the clearing Sora and Ren were busy destroying the bodies using a combination of a Katon jutsu to burn the bodies to ash and a Suiton jutsu to wash the ash into the forest floor. Meanwhile Arashi floated overhead on a compressed ball of air, keeping watch for any threats.

In the middle of the clearing Kakkojimen Isamu knelt and picked up the hitai-ate of one of the fallen, holding it up into the light so he could see it better. The symbol of a musical note glinted in the sunlight.

"So, he has joined forces with Otogakure. This is troublesome." Isamu muttered as he regarded the hitai-ate in his hand.

He turned, absentmindedly compressing the strip of metal into a sphere as he did so, the symbol still evident on it's surface, and walked towards the center of the clearing where a twelve foot tall turtle stood.

"Tama, I want you to take a message to the Ryuukage. Tell Kohaku-sama that the Renegade has joined forces with Orochimaru of the Sannin, and that I am putting in a formal request for Operation: Legacy to go live." Isamu said as he approached.

Tama nodded. Isamu patted the turtle on the head and fed him an apple before placing the sphere in a pouch on the turtle's neck and stepping back so the turtle could vanish in a puff of smoke.

"The Dragon Hermit is not going to like this." He muttered as he turned to join the rest of his team and Team Shadow in destroying the bodies.

* * *

The next morning Naruto awoke to the sun streaming through cracks in his blinds. It was a day off for Team 8, but they were still planning to do some training.

As soon as all three of them could wake up.

And disentangle themselves from their sheets.

And from one another.

On the large bed in his decently decorated apartment Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto lay pinned under the sleeping forms of two naked kunoichi. Their bodies were covered by a collection of twisted sheets, and Naruto could clearly feel the rise and fall of both kunoichi's chests as they breathed slowly.

He lay there, still so as to not awaken his sleeping girlfriends, and stroked their hair lightly. The girls had found his endurance to be a major bonus in the bedroom, but he also tended to leave them exhausted to the bone after their nightly recreation.

As such, the girls had reluctantly agreed to limit heavy-duty recreation to nights when they could sleep in the next morning.

RING RING!

Naruto silently cursed as the phone went off beside the bed.

"Yaaaawwnn."

Hinata sleepily rubbed her eyes and sat up. After blinking a few times and looking around to get her bearings Hinata smiled and leant down, kissing Naruto good morning.

Naruto smiled and gazed up into her eyes as Hinata sat back up and stretched. Naruto's gaze of course quickly dropped lower than her eyes, which caused Hinata to smirk.

_Naruto is so easy to distract._ She thought playfully.

"Mawaaa." Ino murmered as she too sat up and stretched.

Naruto found his attention suddenly split between two decidedly naked and decidedly gorgeous kunoichi, both of whom were currently giving him private little showings of their bodies.

Naruto's system couldn't handle the sexiness.

Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, slayer of five Kirigakure shinobi and several hundred mercenaris, was brought low by a sudden loss of blood.

Ino and Hinata both giggled before snuggling back up with their unconscious boyfriend in an attempt to rouse him for some fun.

* * *

At the main gates into Konoha a team of ANBU stood waiting. In the distance a small group of figures appeared slowly growing closer.

As they neared the ANBU could see that it was a group of sixteen shinobi from Sunagakure no Sato. The leader of the group wore typical Sunagakure attire and had a cloth covering half of his face.

Most of the other shinobi were relatively nondescript, except for a tall boy who wore a large fan on his back, a blond girl with fairly revealing clothing and a similar large fan on her back, an older boy with his face painted and wearing all black, who had some sort of strange cloth-wrapped bundle on his back, and finally a younger boy with red hair, creepy pale eyes, and the kanji for love tattooed over his left eye. He also had a strange gourd strapped to his back.

Sighing behind his mask Hawk reached up and triggered his communicator.

"This is Hawk. The contingent form Sunagakure no Sato has just arrived. Chunin exam operations are in effect."

In a nondescript house in the seedier part of Konoha a figure smirked. He had tapped into the ANBU communication frequency, and it had provided him quite a bit of intelligence for his master, especially on the security preparations for the upcoming chunin exam.

"Orochimaru-sama will be most please to know that the first pieces are in place."

The figure stood, pushing his glasses back onto his nose as he did so.

Yakushi Kabuto had much spying to do before the exam.

* * *

"Again." Kakashi said absentmindedly as his nose was currently buried in a copy of volume 3 of Icha Icha Paradise.

Nearby Sasuke and Kiba repositioned themselves and prepared to clash again. For the last month Kakashi, possibly due to embarrassment after the last mission, had been drilling them in taijutsu, as well as exercises to build chakra control, capacity, and endurance..

This of course was far less than he should have been doing, and it had lead to a lot of grumbling from Kiba and Sasuke about not being taught any new jutsus.

Sasuke was especially annoyed, as his Sharingan had finally awakened during the fight with Haku, and yet his sensei still wouldn't show him any new techniques.

So in the evenings Sasuke had taken Naruto up on his offer to train together, and he joined him and Kiba for their practice spars. It was never a full scale fight like he might have wished for, but he had certainly learned more in the first week than Kakashi had taught them in the entire month prior.

SLAM

Kiba and Sasuke collided, Kiba's instincts allowing him to react to Sasuke's movements and dodge to lessen the blow, while Sasuke's Sharingan allowed him to predict Kiba's movements.

This was easier said than done as the dog-user's style had so much variation and instinct to it, but slowly Sasuke was building up an analysis of the myriad of different patterns that made it up. A few more days and he would likely have the Inuzuka style down.

"Again."

Sasuke and Kiba muttered as they got back in position to attack again. This was so useless.

Nearby Sakura was running laps around the training ground, working on her endurance. Or at least that was what Kakashi told her it was for. Truth was, the jounin didn't think Sakura would make a very good kunoichi, so he had written her off as a lost cause.

Sakura on the other hand was just grumpy that she didn't get to spend all day every day with her Sasuke-kun because of the training.

In a tree nearby, cloaked by special abilities, a woman with black hair and piercing blue eyes crouched and watched.

* * *

Meanwhile, Team 8 was enjoying their day off, mostly by volunteering to assist Gekkou Hayate in training his team.

The three genin of Team 8 were currently facing off with the members of Team 11, launching projectiles and jutsus at them in order to force them to improve their abilities with their swords. This was good practice for Team 8 as well, as every round of attacking allowed them to refine their use of their techniques.

Renji had stood above his two teammates in ability from the start, his ability to deflect all forms of attack impressing the members of Team 8. Unlike Ichigo, who still rushed straight at attacks, usually to get blown back, and Rukia, who relied more on dodging and diverting the attacks than deflecting them.

Hayate had remarked that Renji was a genius with the sword, which had only caused Ichigo to push himself so hard he passed out. It had taken half an hour for him to regain consciousness, but instead of resting the strawberry-blond had simply stood back up and went straight back to training.

Naruto was currently paired up with him, and seeing the determination that Ichigo had, he came up with an idea.

Using secret hand signals he had developed with his team, Naruto laid the trap.

"Ah, come on Ichigo. I know you can do better than this. I saw how you fought during that battle with the Kiri-nins. Don't be a dobe." Naruto called out in a friendly playful manner.

Hearing himself called a 'dobe,' Ichigo's face reddened and his jaw clenched.

"I am not a DOBE!!" He cried out as he switched from defense to offense, rushing Naruto with his sword held, ready to strike.

Naruto smirked, his eyes turning slightly purple.

"Tenraikaze Toriniti." He said softly.

Naruto's voice was echoed by Hinata's and Ino's.

Just before Ichigo reached him three balls of wind slammed into him, bypassing his attempt to defend with his sword.

Kurosaki Ichigo had just learned the first rule of wind-based attacks. They are fucking impossible to defend against using a blade.

* * *

Three figures stood under a rocky overhang by the side of a nondescript road as the rain pounded down with a vengeance from overhead. The first was a stocky male, in his late twenties or early thirties. He was tall, nearly seven foot, and wore intricate, plated black armor, with an extremely large sword strapped to his back. His face was exposed, and an intricate set of red markings was visible covering it wear his wild brown hair wasn't dropping in the way. His eyes were a dark green, illuminated by the occasional strikes of lightning from above. His hitai-ate, visible in the flashes from the lightning, bore the kanji for "Turtle."

The second figure was about six feet tall, but much skinnier and younger than his comrade. He looked to be in his late teens or early twenties. He wore much lighter armor, again black, with a sigil of a phoenix and a dragon locked in battle on his chest. He likewise had a sword, nearly as large as the first man's, strapped to his back. Unlike the first man's, his was wrapped in a black cloth. His eyes, one crimson, one ice blue, and his red hair were illuminated by the lightning. His face was covered in intricate silver and gold marks.

The third figure was barely five foot, if that. She wore armor similar to the second man's, and again had an enormous sword strapped to her back. Due to her minute stature, this was no easy feat. Her blade was covered in a deep blue wrapping. The girl appeared to be in her mid teens, and her eyes were a deep purple. What was visible of her face around the black face mask she was wearing was covered in intricate silver and blue marks.

Suddenly, a fourth figure dropped out of the rain, protected by a sphere of air as he floated down on a spinning ball of air. He looked to be about five and a half feet tall, and like the third figure appeared to be in his mid teens. His hair sparkled yellow in the dark night, and the sparks seemed to reflect off the large blade strapped to his back. His eyes were a pale yellow when seen in the lightning light. Unlike the other three, his face was devoid of markings except for a single gold diamond on his forehead.

As the figure floated just above the ground in front of the other three, grinning, the rain began to slowly let up.

"Well guys, I found an inn about a mile down the road. Its nothing fancy, but it should do for the night."

The tall man stepped forward into the now rain-free air, mussing the blonde's hair as he stepped past him.

"Very good work Arashi. Now gather your belongings and we will head out. We still have several days journey ahead of us before we reach Konoha, and none of us are in one hundred percent condition after ambushing those Otogakure fools."

He turned his head to face back at his other two genin.

"Sora, Ren, you two take the flanks. We'll run formation delta three for practice on our way to the inn."

"Hai, Isamu-sensei!"

Sora and Ren cried out in unison, disappearing in flashes of smoke as they dispersed to their designated positions as their sensei and Arashi began moving down the center of the path as quickly as possible. Ren and Sora both smiled as they rocketed off through the trees, Ren surfing on a wave of water, Sora on a wave of ice. The Chunin exam was going to be a real blast.

* * *

Hiruzen Sarutobi was not pleased as he returned to his office. The latest council meeting had been an effort in frustration. Several council members had tried to claim grievances against Uzumaki Naruto for instance of property damage, but suspiciously, none of them could provide physical proof or additional eye witnesses that Naruto had been responsible.

Add to that the fact that the council had tried to get Team 8 excluded from the list of teams being offered the chance to take the chunin exam and the Sandaime Hokage had a Hokage monument sized headache.

Opening the door to his office Sarutobi was surprised to see his window open and a sealed envelope sitting on his desk. With a motion of his hand he directed his two ANBU guards to quickly search the room.

After a minute the two men reported nothing dangerous was there, so Sarutobi entered and lifted the envelope.

It was addressed to him. He opened it and took out the letter inside, unfolding it and reading it while still standing.

"Forces are gathering on the horizon. A storm is brewing, and Konoha is straight in its path."

The letter bore no signature, merely a stylized insignia of a dragon being born from an erupting volcano.

Sighing, Sarutobi sat down and indicated for the ANBU to bring him Morino Ibiki.

It would seem they needed to go over their intelligence, and security measures, in more detail.

* * *

On the roof of an empty apartment building in the northern end of Konoha six hooded and cloaked figures stood in a circle around a glowing emblem of a dragon being born from an erupting volcano. On the horizon the last rays of the setting sun had just disappeared.

One by one the five figures arrayed on one side of the symbol pushed back their hoods and kneeled. Finally, after several long moments, the sixth and final figure stepped forward into the light of the emblem, pushing her hood back to reveal fiery red hair and a young face marked by gold and silver lines.

Arrayed before her were five of her most loyal and dedicated agents.

First there was a pair of twin brunette sisters, Oyama Hikaru and Oyama Samara. Underneath their black cloaks both wore simple but elegant black and red armor. On the left of the chest there was a sigil of the eight-pointed star of Nagareboshigakure. On the right of the chest both girls bore a unique insignia. Hikaru's depicted a lightning bolt through a fiery star, while Samara's depicted magma spewing forth from the depths of the Earth.

Next there was a tall woman with pure black hair, Kayama Aki. Her face was pretty, but not so pretty as to stand out in a crowd. In fact, there was nothing memorable about her at all except for her eyes, which were a brilliant blue color, like superheated flame. The armor she wore under her cloak bore an insignia of a blue flame on her right chest.

Next to her was a young girl who couldn't have been more than fourteen known only as Sui. She was short, barely five foot tall, and had dark blue hair and eyes. She kept her hair cut short and loose. On the right chest of her armor was the sigil of a flame inside a raindrop.

Last but not least was another young girl, this time about eighteen years old, who was known only as Kaze. Her hair was a bright blond with gold strands in it, and her eyes were a brilliant golden color. On her chest was the insignia of a flame inside a tornado.

"The time is nearing, my loyal Pyromancers. Our enemy moves his forces into position even as we speak. We must prepare for the coming storm. Meteor, Vulcan. I want you to continue to keep an eye on your respective targets. Ensure that they are safe from Otogakure and Root interference."

Hikaru and Samara nodded their acknowledgment to their Master.

"Flare. Reports on our secondary enemy indicate that he may have designs on the last remaining loyal Uchiha. I want you to continue to keep an eye on him until the chunin exams begin."

Aki nodded her acknowledgement as well.

"Sauna, Furnace. I want you two to keep your covers unbroken. Stay low and keep your eyes open for anything suspicious. Your ages make you privy to certain gossip and information that the older Pyromancers won't be."

Sui and Kaze both nodded.

"Very well, Pyromancers, dismissed."

In the blink of an eye Kabatsu Cora was left alone on the roof of the apartment building.

Silently she wiped away the glowing emblem with a wave of her hand before disappearing in a flame shunshin.

* * *

AN: Well, here you go folks. Sorry it took a while, but a family friend was in town to shoot a commercial with Tiger Woods and my dad and I took him out to the desert for a brief vacation over the weekend. I did have a about two thirds of this written before I left though, and I finished the final portion up today.

In other news, I have plotted out the next several chapters, and am currently in the process of plotting out the entirety of the preliminaries for the Chunin exams. With the exception of certain fights, the pairings for the Chunin exam were determined by the name-drawn-from-a-hat method, so they are random. I chose the victors based off my knowledge of the characters and their abilities, and who I felt would win such a matchup. The only alteration I made after the original drawing was to switch two characters in the line-up, because I decided to do certain fights in the finals differently, and I needed to ensure that a certain character made it through his first match.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, as well as the continued thickening of plot. (Just what is the meaning of the red lizards I wonder?) Please remember to Read and Review. Next time, on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 18: Friends and Enemies.

**Techniques**

**Tenraikaze Toriniti**--_Divine Wind Trinity/_ This combo requires three users to perform. The three users fire a sphere of air from their hands, colliding at the target and creating an explosive blast of air. As with all wind-based attacks, this one cannot be deflected or diverted by cutting it with a blade. It is however easy to dodge if anticipated, making it more useful for ambushes, surprise attacks, and pranks. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Review Responses - **Indeed.

landoffire - yeah, the Kakashi worshipping Icha Icha was what I've always thought really went on in his house. And as you can see, the Chunin exams are coming up pretty quickly.

The Uchiha Itachi - Yes, Sasuke is a jerk. And I'm hoping I've made it sufficiently ambiguous whether he will eventually be an enemy or a friend. You'll all just have to see. And as for Ibiki and Haku, I'll just say this, Haku will be treated well, and he will turn up later in the story much coolified. Remember, Kubikiri Houchou was brought back along with Haku.

naruchigo - I'm pleased you are enjoying the story so much. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

jbalman - thank you. There are numerous plotlines to this story, and several of them are preparing to converge. As to Kakashi's vault, I honestly believe thats what he really has.

Moonfal - Thank you. I hope you enjoyed this one as well.

deathwaker1989 - Sorry man, but not gonna happen. This isn't a harem story, it's a ménage à trois. Naruto will not be getting it on with any other girls. There will however be other relationships. Anko for instance will meet her match.

mc2000 - Thank you. I try.

Jack512 - As you can see Ino and Hinata have done more than just let Naruto know how they feel. And as you can also see, a little more about the spies has been revealed. But just what they ultimately are will still have to wait. The only hint that I will leave is that the symbols they each wore on their chests have very real importance to their capabilities.


	18. Chapter 18: Friends and Enemies

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

**AN: Something is up with the document editor right now, and its preventing me from making the horizontal lines. All "Line Break" s are in place of that until I can fix this problem.**

**Warning: Due to some adult-themed content and innuendo, this chapter may not be suitable for children under the age of 18. Please read with caution.  
**

Chapter 18: Friends and Enemies

The sun rose bright and shiny over Konoha.

It revealed the hustle and bustle of the city, merchants already opening shop for their early customers.

It revealed squads of ANBU making patrols through the city, or keeping watch over high-priority targets.

It revealed several more genin teams arriving from the other Hidden Villages to compete in the Chunin exams.

And it revealed a group of three kids, a brown haired boy with goggles and a blue scarf, a runny- nosed boy with glasses and goggles, and an orange haired girl with the same goggles.

All three were running for their lives from a very irritated Yamanaka Ino.

"Get back here you brats!!" Ino cried as she chased after the three. "Take your punishment like shinboi!!"

Ino was quite ticked off that Konohamaru and his two friends had all used Naruto's patented "Sexy no Jutsu." Even more so that they had used it to attempt to flirt with Naruto, if only as part of a plot to get the drop on him.

So while Ino was busy chasing the brats down to introduce them to Mother Earth, Naruto was getting a high-pitched lecture from Hinata for, as she called it, "corrupting the youth of Konoha with that perverted jutsu."

Naruto of course managed to shut Hinata up with one comment, whispered in her ear.

"You didn't have a problem when I used that technique last night, Hime."

Naruto chuckled and swept the blushing kunoichi off her feet, taking to the rooftops in pursuit of their remaining teammate. If they didn't get her and get to their training ground on time Kurenai was like to give them laps for punishment.

**Line Break**

In another part of Konoha six foreign shinobi walked languidly through the city, looking at all the stores they passed with mixed degrees of interest.

Four of the group had similarly shaped cloth-wrapped bundles on their backs that just screamed 'sword' to anyone who saw them. The remaining two also had large objects on their backs, but they were unique in both cases.

The first, a short boy with shocking cobalt blue hair, had a large metal flask on his back, inscribed with the symbol of Nagareboshi on it. He also had two otters riding on his shoulders and looking around, chattering to one another excitedly.

The second, a girl just as short with short pure black hair, had two large curved blades with a ring at the end of the handle.

To a civilian they just looked like really wicked weapons, worn almost like a pair of wings.

To a ninja it was clear that they were some sort of compressed variant of a Fuma shuriken.

Suddenly the tall girl with wild black hair stopped, the two wild-looking cats on her shoulders hissing, their fur standing on end.

"What is it Akane?" Sora asked as he stepped up beside her.

His hand wasn't on his sword, but to a trained eye his body-stance was anything but casual.

Akane grinned fiercely.

"Ketsueki Kiba and Panthera smell dogs. I think I'm gonna go have some fun. Catch you later Scales."

Akane leapt off down a side street letting out a feline howl. Back in the street the two shorter shinobi shrugged.

"Well, I guess it can't be helped. We didn't choose Akane as our third member because of her stealth skills after all." The black haired girl muttered.

Beside her the blue-haired boy laughed, and the two otters on his shoulders chattered in laughter as well.

"You can say that again Tsubaki. When it comes to combat she's a juggernaut, but she just isn't any use on stealth missions." He said, still chuckling a little.

"True Nobu, very true." Tsubaki muttered.

She sighed and turned to face Sora and leant in and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"I'll catch you later Scales. Don't get into to much trouble while we're gone."

Tsubaki turned and raced off down the side-street Akane had used and disappeared around a corner. Nobu chuckled and waved back at the members of Team Turtle as he followed suit.

Sora chuckled, while Ren simply smirked and Arashi laughed uproariously as he watched the two otters race to keep up with their partner.

Finally Sora turned back to his two teammates and spoke up.

"Ok guys, lets go find someplace with decent food to get some brunch. Then we can do shopping." Sora said with a smile.

His two teammates' eyes lit up at different points during his announcement. Arashi's at the mention of food, and Ren's at the mention of shopping.

Sora chuckled and turned, continuing along the street flanked by his two friends and teammates.

**Line Break**

"Hey! Let me go!" Konohamaru's whining voice drifted over the rooftops.

Naruto instantly readjusted his course, followed by Hinata, who had forced him to put her down several blocks before.

As they landed on top of a nearby house they looked down into the alley behind it. They were greeted with the sight of a black-clothed shinobi with odd white and purple face paint holding a struggling Konohamaru in the air in front of him. Nearby Ino stood with Konohamaru's two friends, and surprisingly Sakura and Kiba as well.

On the strange shinobi's otherside stood a blond haired girl with a large fan on her back, and a Sunagakure headband clearly displayed.

Naruto groaned and leapt to the ground below, straightening as he stood back up and looked straight at the two shinobi with a cold edged stare.

"Put Konohamaru down. Now." He said simply as Hinata landed behind him, her Byakugan eyes already activated.

The strange shinobi smirked at him.

"No, Basically, I hate midgets. Especially ones who are rude and bump into other people." He replied.

Behind him the blond kunoichi shook her head and muttered. "I'm not involved in this…"

"I said put him down. I'm not going to ask you a third time, teme." Naruto continued, his eyes cold.

Behind him Sakura was nearly freaking out.

_You idiot, don't antagonize this guy!_ She thought frantically, wishing she could choke Naruto to shut him up. Inner Sakure was noticeably silent.

Naruto tensed and prepared to move, knowing his two teammates would be right behind him backing him up, when suddenly the unnamed shinobi cried out in pain and clutched his wrist, dropping konohamaru hard.

Naruto watched for a moment as a stone dropped to the ground, then he traced its trajectory back up into a tree to find the Uchiha heir sitting there tossing a rock into the air.

"What are you bastards doing in our village?" He asked coldly.

"Sasuke-kun!!"

Sakura's high-pitched squeal caused all involved to cringe involuntarily in pain.

_He's pretty cute…_ The mysterious blond thought to herself upon seeing the newcomer.

"Another punk whose pissing me off." Kankuro muttered as he clutched his hand. "Hey punk, get down here!! I hate show-offs like you most of all."

Kankura cracked his knuckles and then pulled a large cloth-wrapped bundle off his back. The blond kunoichi stared in shock for a moment before stepping up behind him frantically.

"Hey, your even going to use Karasu?" She asked nervously.

"Kankuro, stop it."

Sasuke froze as an emotionless voice came from behind him.

"You're an embarrassment to our village."

Standing behind Sasuke, hanging upside down from a tree branch, was a shinobi with spiky red hair, overly-done eyeliner, a large gourd on his back, and a tattoo of the kanji for love over his left eye. He had his arms crossed and he did not look happy.

"Ga…Gaara…" the afore named Kankuro managed to stutter, his lip twitching and worry apparent in his eyes.

_How did he get behind me?_ Sasuke wondered worriedly, then narrowed his eyes. _That's Kakashi level sneakiness._

"Losing yourself in a fight. How pathetic…Why do you think we came to Konoha?" Gaara said, his voice cold and devoid of emotion.

"Listen Gaara, they started it and…" Kankuro stuttered.

"Shut up…or I'll kill you…" Gaara said, murder in his voice.

Kankuro backed up, sweating like crazy and shuddering in fear.

"Now now Gaara, that's no way to treat your brother is it?"

A male voice echoed from behind Sasuke again. Sasuke spun, only to come face to face with a tall shinobi who appeared to be a few years older than him. His spiked hair was a brighter red than Gaara's, and Sasuke noted that his eyes were two different colors. His right eye was red like a blazing fire, while his left eye was a blue as glacial ice. His hitai-ate displayed an eight pointed star, and the black armor he wore bore a sigil of a phoenix and a dragon locked in combat.

On the ground, everyone stared in surprise at a second shinobi sneaking up so stealthily. They were so preoccupied they didn't notice the blond haired boy riding on a whirling ball of air or the green haired masked girl with dark purple eyes stepping up behind the foreign blond kunoichi.

Gaara's eyes seemed to narrow just a hair.

"Kabatsu Sora. I must say I really am not surprised to see you here." The blond kunoichi said from the ground, smirking up at the red head.

"Well of course not, Sabaku no Temari. This is the first chance my team has had to take the Chunin exams, so there was no way we would miss this." Sora replied with a grin, ignoring the shocked Uchiha standing before him.

_Damn, he is looking as fine as ever._ Temari thought to herself as she gazed up at the older shinobi.

"There is no need for your interference, Sora. I was dealing with my brother because he was embarrassing our village." Gaara replied his voice devoid of emotion.

Sora shrugged.

"Ok, then take the idiot and go. I'd hate to miss a chance to go toe to toe with you in the exams just because your idiot older brother got you three kicked out of Konoha." Sora said, chuckling.

This earned the faintest of smiles from Gaara before he sand shunshined down beside his siblings.

"Come on, let's go." He said turning and walking away.

Kankuro frowned and turned to follow him. Temari started to turn to leave but then looked back over her shoulder.

"Thanks again for the rescue Sora. I still owe you a date for that." Temari said, blowing the older Nagareboshi genin a kiss.

In the tree high above them Sora turned bright red. It was bad enough he was considered the most eligible bachelor by all the girls back home, but now he was picking up fan girls form foreign countries.

_My mom is going to kill me!_ He thought despairingly.

Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard a deep voice laughing at his troubles.

"Hey! Just who the hell are you?" Sasuke asked harshly, snapping Sora out of his thoughts.

Sora refocused his eyes on the black-haired genin.

"Apologies, but it's rude to ask someone's name without giving your own name first." Sora said with a smile.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "I am Uchiha Sasuke, heir to the Uchiha clan." He said arrogantly.

Sora continued to smile amicably.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Uchiha Sasuke, heir to the Uchiha clan. I am Kabatsu Sora, and I'm no one important." Sora replied with a smile.

FWOOSH

Sora disappeared in a flame shunshin and reappeared on the ground beside his two teammates.

"And these are my teammates, Domonami Ren and Gouzenkaze Arashi."

Sakura, who had been scared shitless during this whole exchange, almost spoke up. But Naruto beat her to it.

"That doesn't tell us why you are here though. Even though our two villages have a non-aggression treaty, you are forbidden to enter our village without express permission. And why did you let those Suna-nin go?" He asked, steel edging his voice.

Sora merely grinned back, while Arashi chuckled and Ren smirked. It was Ren who finally spoke up.

"We are here with permission to take part in the Chunin Selection Exams, as are those Suna-nin you just encountered."

The members of Teams 7 and 8 blinked.

"The Chunin Selection Exams?" Naruto and Sasuke, who had jumped to the ground beside Naruto, both asked in unison.

"Yes." Ren continued, still smirking and crossing her arms. "The exams are held every six months in different hidden villages. They allow the examiners to determine who is ready to be promoted to the rank of chunin."

As Ren spoke Hinata and Ino were both staring at Arashi in confusion. The blond boy merely blinked upon seeing the looks on their faces and hesitatingly smiled back.

"So why did you help us then?" Sasuke asked, staring at Sora, his Sharingan itching to be activated.

"A couple reasons. First, as I told Sabaku no Gaara, I want to have a chance to go toe-to-toe with him during the exams, and I won't get to do that if Kankuro gets them kicked out of Konoha before the exams even begin." Sora replied. "Second, we didn't want to see them hurt some innocent kids."

Sora couldn't have been more than a couple years older than him, so Sora's comment really pissed Sasuke off.

"We aren't kids you idiot!" He cried out, preparing to throw the rock he was holding at Sora to prove his point.

Uchiha Sasuke suddenly found himself floating in the air as his feet were suddenly swept out from under him by a sweeping kick from Ren. He blinked as he hit the ground hard, staring up as Ren stood over him, glaring down at him.

"I don't care if you are next in line for the position of Hokage, but no one threatens my teammates and gets away with it." She said coldly, continuing to glare down at the Uchiha, who rather than do the smart thing, glared back as he got to his feet.

Sora chuckled and shook his head.

"I sincerely hope you put up more of a fight during the exam, Uchiha. If you want your family name to remain so famous, that is."

Sora smirked and turned to walk away, waving absentmindedly back over his shoulder.

"I'll see you again, I'm sure. But right now, I need to get some food. Ciao." Sora said lightly.

Ren smirked towards Sasuke and appeared to be checking him out for a moment before turning and following Sora. Standing behind Sasuke was Sakura, who had helped him to his feet. Neither genin realized that Ren had actually been looking at Sakura.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll be seeing you again." Arashi spoke for the first time with a grin. He sent Naruto a contemplative look. "Especially you, since you are one of us."

Before anyone could reply Arashi spun around and sped off after his teammates on his sphere of air.

As the members of Team Turtle headed around a corner in search of a nearby restaurant, the members of Teams 7 and 8 stared after them, and all of them were having a myriad of different thoughts.

Hinata and Ino were both simultaneously impressed by the behavior of that Ren chick. She had after all shut down the Uchiha snob.

Kiba was thinking that Ren was a true alpha, and that she was a challenge worthy of his attention. Too bad for Kiba, though he didn't know it yet, but the green-haired kunoichi would eventually settle her attention on a different member of his team.

Sakura on the other hand had picked up Ren's vibe, (or thought she had) even if the girl had put on a front of being disinterested. She vowed that there would be no way she would let the green-haired foreign kunoichi steal _her_ Sasuke-kun from her.

Sasuke on the other hand was intrigued by Ren, both by the fact that she and her team seemed to have the respect of a scarily strong shinobi from Suna, but also by the fact that she seemed to be utterly disdainful of him rather than sycophantic.

_She's perfect._ Sasuke thought to himself, already considering ways to make her his.

And finally Naruto, who simply stood there and stared as the trio of Nagareboshi genin walked away. There was something about them that had felt familiar, but he couldn't place a finger on it.

If that wasn't enough, that blond kid had looked so similar to him it was scary. He lacked the whisker marks of course, and his eyes were different, but the hair and structure of his face felt almost like looking in a mirror.

And the comments he had made. Just what had he meant by 'one of us?'

Naruto filed it away to ask his mother at dinner that night.

In a tree nearby a group of three shinobi wearing Otogakure hitai-ate had been watching the confrontation.

"Well, what do you think?" One of the shinobi asked.

A crouching man with his head wrapped in bandages looked thoughtful for a few moments before replying.

"Nothing serious. But that Suna with the gourd, that black-haired Konoha, and the Nagareboshi with the red hair. We should keep an eye on them."

The three shinobi stood and leapt away, unaware that they had been spotted by not one, not two, but three black and red armored shinobi.

Quietly, Oyama Hikaru, Oyama Samara, and Kayama Aki dropped the illusions they had been hiding behind and stepped out into the open. Sharing a look the three nodded before vanishing in flame shunshins.

**Line Break**

In the back of a nondescript apartment in a relatively vacant building, sits an industrial strength freezer.

Kabatsu Cora watched patiently through a window in the refrigerator, watching as a strange device slowly drained the essence from one after another of the many odd red lizards that her Pyromancers had gathered over the past several months.

Set in a special hopper in the device was a small glowing purple-black crystal sphere. It was clearly the center of the sleek black device, and all the energy that was being harnessed from the corpses of the lizards was being channeled into the crystal.

Slowly, a red spiraling glow began to infuse the stone, mixing with the purple-black glow already present.

Outside the freezer Kabatsu Cora smiled.

All was going according to plan.

**Line Break**

In the Hokage's office a large number of jounin all gathered. They were all looking around at one another, slightly confused by why they were all being gathered together.

Finally the Hokage entered and took his seat. After taking a few puffs on his pipe and waiting for everyone to quiet down he began speaking.

"I trust that you have all figured out by the people around you why I have called you all here." He began, taking another puff on his pipe. "In precisely one week the Chunin exams will commence."

The gathered jounin all nodded in understanding.

"I figured it was almost cough time." Hayate said. "I've been seeing several foreign contingents in Konoha the past few days."

The Hokage smiled faintly behind his pipe before continuing.

"Now, as you all know, any Genin team that has completed at least eight missions will be allowed to compete if their Jounin instructors nominate them. I'll start by allowing the instructors of the knew rookie teams step forward if they wish to nominate their teams."

Beside him Umino Iruka frowned as Hatake Kakashi stepped forward.

"Team 7 will take the exams. Sasuke is ready for them." Kakashi said coolly.

"Absolutely not!" Iruka shouted, standing. "I've read the mission reports Kakashi, and they most certainly are not prepared for the exams."

Hakashi merely stared at Iruka for a moment with one eye.

"I beg your pardon, Iruka," Kakashi finally said, "But you are no longer their teacher. I am. And I am saying that they are ready for it."

"Yosh! The fires of youth must burn brightly in your students then Kakashi! I won't let my eternal rival beat me in this. Hokage-sama!! Team 9 will take the exam as well. My youthful students are more than ready for the challenges of the exam." Maito Gai shouted exhuberantly as he stepped up beside Kakashi.

Iruka and the Hokage bore witness to the sweat drop forming on Kakashi's forehead.

As Kakashi stepped back, followed by the still exhuberant Gai, Yuhi Kurenai, Sarutobi Asuma, and Gekko Hayate all stepped forward to nominate their teams as well.

Behind his clasped hands Sarutobi Hiruzen grinned faintly. Rookie teams were rarely nominated for the exams, and this year's rookie class was continuing to surprise him in leaps and bounds.

Umino Iruka was still worried that none of them were truly ready for the trials of the Chunin Selection Exams.

**Line Break**

When Team 8 met the next morning at their usual training ground Kurenai had a present for them.

"The Chunin Selection Exams are being held in one week. Yesterday I nominated you for the exams. You should consider it a real privilege and a sign of my pride in all of you, as rookie teams are almost never allowed to compete." Kurenai said with a smile.

Sitting before her Naruto, Ino, and Hinata all blinked before their faces became suffused with wide grins. Any further comment from Kurenai was momentarily forestalled as the two younger kunoichi turned and kissed Naruto in celebration.

When the trio finally calmed down Kurenai smiled and pulled out three papers, handing them to her students.

"These are your applications. You will have the next week to train and to decide whether you wish to take the exam or not. I only nominated you remember, I did not make the decision for you."

Kurenai stood again.

"Now if you decide to take the exam, bring these completed applications to Room 301 of the Academy one week from today. Make sure you have all you your shinobi gear with you and that you are ready for anything. The exams are going to test all your skills."

Kurenai smiled at her team as they smiled back up at her.

"Now, you all have the rest of the week off, including today. You may come to me at any time if you have any questions about the exam or your training. I will be waiting to see what you decide."

When none of her students spoke up immediately with a question she nodded, still smiling.

"Now, if you three don't mind, I need to go meet someone for lunch."

With that Kurenai vanished in a leaf shunshin. After a few moments Naruto grinned his infamous prankster grin and looked to both sides at the two lovely kunoichi hanging off his arms as all three stood.

"So, think she knows that we've figured out who she is going out with yet?" He asked, still grinning.

"Doubtful. You haven't pulled any pranks on either of them in a while, so they have probably let their guard down." Hinata said thoughtfully.

Ino took the opening to lean in and begin kissing Naruto deeply, wrapping her arms around him.

"Hey!! Leave some for me!!" Hinata cried out when she realized what Ino was doing without her, turning red in annoyance.

In a tree nearby, unnoticed by the three genin, Kabatsu Sora sat chuckling next to Oyama Hikaru.

"Looks like the kid has the same problem I do. I just hope for his sake it never gets as out of control as mine." Sora said grinning as he stood.

"We'll be coming by the restaurant for dinner around seven, is that alright Auntie Hikaru?" Sora asked.

He narrowly managed to avoid being pounded through the tree by Hikaru by using a flame shunshin, reappearing outside of her reach.

"I told you never to call me Auntie." Hikaru muttered around the cigarette clenched in her teeth.

Sora merely laughed and leapt backwards off the tree and disappeared again in another flame shunshin.

**Line Break**

Over the next week Team 8 trained hard, fast, and long. There was no doubt in the trio's minds that they would be taking the exam. None at all.

They picked up from a random meeting with Team 7 that they had been nominated as well, and Naruto had just shrugged when Sasuke smirked.

"That's pretty cool guys. Guess that means we'll be seeing you there." Naruto had said aloud.

_Your team really isn't ready for this._ He had said to Kiba using sign language.

Despite his confidence in his own abilities Kiba sighed. Naruto was right after all.

But that wouldn't stop them from trying.

The day before the exam though the members of Team 8 retired early from their training. Ino and Hinata went to Ino's home for a change, to get ready for a big date they had planned with Naruto, while Naruto returned to his apartment to get changed and cleaned up.

Three hours later, just as the sun was about to set, Ino and Hinata approached Hikaru's restaurant, slightly red from all the admiring looks they had been getting.

Both girls were wearing elegant yukata in various shades of purple. Ino's was a dark purple, like the majority of her clothes, and complimented the purple ribbon she had used to put her hair up in a slightly more elegant style than she normally wore it in. The tightly fitting yukata showed off her figure, and it had earned her several wolf-whistles from various men they had passed.

Hinata on the other hand wore a pale lavender yukata, with just a trace of darker purple in the lining. At Ino's insistence Hinata had allowed her hair to be styled and put up in a mirror-image to Ino's own, though held in place by a pale lavender ribbon instead. Her yukata clung to her body tightly as well, revealing to the entire world what Ino and Naruto both already knew. Hinata was definitely more well endowed than Ino.

Not that Ino minded, too much. Naruto did make the very best effort possible to never neglect either of them during their bedroom (and sometimes living room, kitchen, and pretty much the entire apartment) antics, and to always ensure they were both thoroughly pleasured and exhausted by the end of their acrobatics.

Ino shuddered at the mere thought of what sort of pleasure she would certainly be feeling later tonight.

Beside her Hinata's nose dripped a little blood as her thought processes followed those of her fellow kunoichi.

By the time they reached the restaurant, both girls were fully aroused, and it took every bit of restraint they had not to jump their Naruto-kun the moment they saw him. Their jaws practically hit the ground

Naruto was standing out front of the restaurant wearing an elegant black yukata with gold spirals scattered across it. His hair was flowing loosely, hanging down and framing his handsome face, and his whisker marks made him look exotic. Hinata and Ino were surprised to realize that he had washed the red and black highlights out his hair. It made them curious as to why.

Since Naruto hadn't seen them yet the two girls quickly closed their mouths and regained their posture before continuing forward.

When he finally spotted them the girls were rewarded with his eyes bugging out. Seeing (and feeling) his girlfriends' gorgeous naked bodies was one thing, but dressed up as they were the two girls were absolutely radiant.

_**Well, well, well Kit. Looks like somebody is definitely getting lucky tonight.**_ Kyuubi said chuckling in Naruto's head.

Naruto was momentarily graced with the image of a human-sized Kyuubi sitting on a couch watching a television set and munching on popcorn. The television was displaying a replay of what Naruto and his two girls had been getting up to the night before.

Back in reality Naruto blushed and stepped forward to welcome the two approaching girls, hugging both and giving both a gentle kiss before stepping back from them.

"You look absolutely stunning tonight ladies." He managed to say with some modicum of eloquence, his face still red. "Would you allow a humble shinobi like myself to escort you to dinner this fine evening?"

Naruto bowed and offered his two gorgeous girlfriends his arms. Smiling, Hinata and Ino both stepped to his side and looped their arms around his.

"Of course, kind sir. We would be most honored to be graced by your company this evening." Ino said, thoroughly enjoying the tone Naruto had set for the evening's festivities.

"What precisely did you have in mind kind sir?" Hinata asked as her arm slipped through Naruto's, snuggling her chest against Naruto's arm and and shoulder suggestively.

"Well, first I thought we might have a romantic candle-lit dinner. Followed by a moonlit stroll through the city, and ending with retiring to my apartment." Naruto said with a smile, playing his roll well.

Both girls giggled suggestively and snuggled their chests closer to him as the trio headed toward the entrance to Hikaru's.

Several men walking along the street past him glared at Naruto, out of both hatred of the Kyuubi, and a fair amount of jealousy that the Kyuubi's vessel had the attention of two such gorgeous and sexually appealing women.

At least one man received a punch to the arm from a jealous girlfriend who had caught them drooling after the two gorgeous kunoichi.

Once inside the restaurant Hinata and Ino were greeted with a real treat.

While the majority of the restaurant was full of hustle and bustle, one of the sections near the back had been completely emptied, most of the tables and chairs removed, and the lights dimmed. Instead, in the center of the room stood a single small circular table with three chairs set around it.

The table was lit by a trio of candles, and the table was already set with a bottle of an expensive white wine Hinata recognized as being imported from the Lightning Country and a trio of tall wine glasses.

As soon as they had entered the restaurant a tall blond girl with bright golden eyes and hair that glittered in the light smiled and approached them. She was wearing an elegant blue kimono like all the other waitresses, and was carrying a set of menus.

"Greetings, Namikaze-san. We have been awaiting you. Your private table has been prepared, as you requested." The teenager, who could only have been a few years older than Naruto and his two dates, bowed low before them. "If you will please follow me."

The blond girl turned and motioned towards the candle-lit corner of the restaurant before leading the way.

Naruto smiled and began walking, two very desirable young women hanging off his arms. All around the restaurant patrons were staring at the trio. Various young women were practically drooling at the sight of the young Namikaze heir in such elegant clothing. At the same time, almost every male in the place was considering Naruto to be a lucky bastard, because he had two of the most gorgeous women any of them had ever seen on his arms.

In one corner of the room, Team 7 sat having dinner. Kiba and Sakura sat with their backs to the main room, and thus did not see Naruto and his two gorgeous dates walk through on their way to their private table. Sasuke however was sitting with his back to the window, and got a perfect view of Hinata and Ino's gorgeous figures as the two kunoichi walked by on the arms of the dobe.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he watched Naruto pull out first one and then another of the chairs, assisting the ladies joining him in taking their seat. Neither of his teammates noticed this as Kiba was focused on his food, and Sakura was chattering on about some inanity that Sasuke couldn't be bothered to listen to.

_Those two, they are two good for that dobe. They are two extremely strong and gorgeous kunoichi. They will produce strong children, I'm sure._ Sasuke thought, staring as the two very attractive kunoichi with equal parts lust, desire, and contemplation. _I am the last Uchiha, and I will have them for my wives. The council will surely support any petition I make to their fathers. That dobe of a Namikaze won't be able to fight a council decree. Besides, Ino was always in love with me. I'm sure she only settled on the dobe because she hadn't been able to get my attention. I'm sure she'll leap at the chance to be mine if I give her the option._

Uchiha Sasuke smirked, gears beginning to turn in his brain. Across the table form him Sakura continued to natter on, completely oblivious to Sasuke's musings.

Back in their private corner of the restaurant the blond girl was placing the menus before the three seated love birds.

"My name is Asami, and I'll be your waitress tonight." Asami said brightly. "Can I get you anything to drink or for appetizers?"

Naruto smiled politely at the blond girl.

"I think we'll start with some salads and some gyoza." He said. "As for drinks, just some water. We already have the wine Hikaru procured at my request."

Asami smiled and walked towards the kitchen to tell the chef what they had ordered as appetizers.

Naruto returned his attention to the two lovely ladies sitting across from him and smiled.

"Ladies, can I interest either of you in some wine?" Naruto asked as he uncorked the bottle on the table.

Ino and Hinata both smiled and nodded in assent. Naruto smiled back and carefully filled all three glasses on the table.

As he set the bottle back down he observed his two girlfriends as they both took a sip of their wine. Hinata drank her wine in a very refined manner, which he noticed Ino was trying emulate. He fought the urge to chuckle and simply smiled at the two girls as he took a sip of his own wine.

"Mmmm, exquisite. Rin certainly has a good taste in wine." He remarked a moment later as he set his glass back down.

"Mmmm, she certainly does." Ino replied with a purr as she set her own glass down.

The trio spent the next several minutes slowly sipping their wine and making small talk, before Asami finally returned with their appetizers.

Hinata and Ino ate their salads slowly and daintily. Not for fear of ruining their yukata or of Naruto thinking them pigs, but simply because they were enjoying the date and being treated like princesses. Naruto had taken them out for a nice romantic meal, and they intended to enjoy it properly.

Naruto on the otherhand was actively resisting his desire to just dig into the platter of gyoza that had been placed on their table. Instead, he ate them slowly and sparingly during gaps in the conversation. Given how hectic their days normally were, he was enjoying being able to just spend an entire evening treating his ladies right.

Asami returned a short while later and took their orders, retreating to the kitchen to tell the chef. The trio continued to slowly enjoy the appetizers and fine wine while chatting. Under the table-cloth of course was a different story. Bot Hinata and Ino had slipped off a shoe, and their feet were currently teasing Naruto's crotch. The two girls wanted their man fully prepared when they returned to his apartment after dinner.

Finally Asami returned with their main courses. Hinata had ordered a dish of tenpura shrimp and vegetables served over a bed of sticky rice with inari-zushi on the side. Ino had ordered a plate of barbecue beef and vegetables, served over a plate of fried rice. And Naruto had ordered a platter of barbecue beef and a never-ending rice bowl.

Of course, even with all that food, Naruto did his best to pace himself. He was very careful not to eat messily, as he did not wish to embarrass his two girls, who were both very carefully enjoying their meals, while continuing to tease Naruto with their feet and innuendo-laden winks.

After about half an hour Naruto excused himself from the table and headed for the bathroom.

In the main part of the restaurant, Uchiha Sasuke, who had remained and ordered more food after both of his teammates had left to return home and rest up for the start of the Chunin Selection Exams the next day, smirked.

_Now's my chance, while the dobe is in the restroom._ Sasuke thought.

His arrogance knew no bounds as he stood and straightened his clothing before approaching the private table.

"Well, good evening ladies. Fancy meeting such gorgeous women as yourselves here." Sasuke said confidently as he slid into Naruto's vacated seat.

"What do you think you are doing, Sasuke?" Ino asked, barely restrained fury in her voice at her perfect date with her boyfriend being interrupted.

Sasuke picked up Naruto's glass and took a sip of the whine, murmering 'exquisite' before continuing.

"Well ladies, as you well know I am the last of the Uchiha clan, and as such there are certain laws that allow me to take more than one wife in order to restore my clan. And as I was eating dinner tonight I saw you come in, and I was struck by your beauty. So I am here to ask if you two absolutely gorgeous ladies would like to ditch the dobe and spend an evening with a real man." Sasuke said, his arrogance and confidence brimming full as he leant forward towards the two kunoichi.

Ino and Hinata shared a look before leaning back towards Sasuke, faint smiles on their faces. Sasuke's smile deepened in response.

"You know Sasuke-kun." Ino purred. "You just might have a point there. We _certainly_ don't want to end up married to a dobe."

Sasuke's smile deepened as he suddenly felt a pair of feet playing around his crotch.

"So do you know what we are going to do?" Hinata asked, her grin deepening.

Sasuke waited in anticipation. Suddenly Hinata and Ino both frowned and pulled back.

"Kick your fucking ass for trying to seduce another man's girlfriends!" They both cried out, drawing the attention of the entire restaurant.

Over a hundred people bore witness to Uchiha Sasuke being kicked in the balls so hard that he flew all the way out the open door of the restaurant and landed in a puddle of mud, cluthing his crotch and moaning in pain.

Hinata and Ino both quickly got their shoes back on and stood, their perfect evening ruined. Asami, who had witnessed the entire incident, was quickly at their side.

"I am so, so sorry this happened." She exclaimed. "Is there anything we can do to make up for the horrible inconvenience this must have caused?"

Any reply the two furious kunoichi might have made was stayed as Naruto reentered the room, blinking at the looks on their faces.

"Um, Hime, Ino? Did I do something wrong?" Naruto asked worriedly. He hadn't thought excusing himself to use the restroom would be considered such an insult.

**Line Break**

Ten minutes later Naruto and his two beautiful girlfriends were once again walking arm in arm. This time they were headed back to Naruto's apartment, enjoying a quiet moonlit stroll as they did so.

None of them spoke a word, content instead to simply snuggled against Naruto for warmth as they walked slowly. Ino had her arm around Naruto's waste and kept sneaking little kisses from him, while Hinata was snuggled tightly against him and was resting her head on his shoulder.

As they had left the restaurant Naruto's anger at the Uchiha-teme, who he had started to consider a possible friend, had mostly abated.

But only because the sight of Uchiha Sasuke being lifted onto a stretcher by medic-nins and screaming bloody murder for being kicked in the family jewels was so priceless.

Hinata and Ino on the other hand secretly vowed that if Sasuke even so much as looked at them the wrong way they were going to ensure that he never had children.

But they quickly put the incident out of their minds, instead enjoying the feel of Naruto's muscular body in their arms. Both girls shivered a little in anticipation of what Naruto had in store for them. Given how much effort he had put into the dinner, they were anxiously awaiting what he had planned for when they got back to his apartment.

Finally, after about thirty minutes of walking, they reached Naruto's apartment and followed him upstairs. When he got to the door he inserted his key and then paused, turning to face the two girls.

"Now, I have a surprise planned for you, so please, close your eyes." Naruto said with a soft smile for the two women of his life.

Hinata and Ino both took deep breaths and closed their eyes.

They heard Naruto turn the key, and heard the click as the lock disengaged.

They heard the slight squeak of the hinges as Naruto swung the door open.

They felt Naruto take their hands and lead them into the apartment, and heard him close the door behind them.

"Ok, you can open your eyes now." Naruto's voice said softly from behind the two girls.

Ino and Hinata opened their eyes and gasped.

Naruto had started a fire in the fireplace, and had moved the furniture and laid out a futon in the middle of the floor.

He had covered the futon with layers of soft blankets, and had scattered lilac and rose petals across them.

There were scented candles scattered around the edges of the room, and sitting next to the futon was an ice bucket with a chilled bottle of chardonnay and three glasses.

"I hope that this will make up for the unpleasantness that disrupted our dinner Hime, Ino." Naruto said with a smile and a slight chuckled.

He walked over and sat down beside the ice bucket, popping the cork on the bottle of chardonnay and pouring three glasses of it. By the time he had finished both Ino and Hinata had kicked their shoes off and sat down on the futon, leaning towards him.

They happily took the glasses Naruto offered to them.

"Ladies, a toast. To the two most beautiful, strong, intelligent, and amazing girls in the world." Naruto said proudly, holding his glass up.

Hinata and Ino clinked their glasses with his and then all three teenagers downed the chardonnay.

Naruto turned to pour more, but found Ino's hand on his wrist, stopping him. Turning he found Ino and Hinata had set their glasses down and were both leaning towards him.

"I don't think we need any more lubrication, Naruto-kun." Hinata said as she got closer.

"We're more than wet enough for you." Ino said huskily as she kissed Naruto on the neck.

Naruto let his glass drop to the floor, forgotten as he was embraced by two very amorous kunoichi.

As he disappeared into the haze of lust, love, and desire that they incited in him, Naruto was vaguely aware that both girls were quickly undoing the obi keeping their yukata closed, letting the cotton clothes fall lightly from their shoulders, revealing their gloriously beautiful and toned naked bodies to the boy who had won their hearts.

Naruto spent the next several hours putting his unnatural endurance to good use.

**Line Break**

Back at the restaurant Asima was just finishing removing her kimono, revealing the black and red body-armor she wore underneath it, emblazoned with a symbol of a flame inside a tornado.

Kaze didn't even blink when a panel in the wall behind her suddenly slid open with a click, revealing the cloaked and hooded figure of Kabatsu Cora.

Smiling, but without turning around, Kaze spoke.

"The Uchiha has become a liability. His actions tonight will have set him permanently as an enemy in the young Gouzenkaze's mind. We will have to seek a new rival to provide the drive he needs."

Kabatsu Cora nodded silently in acknowledgement before disappearing back into the hidden tunnel, the panel sliding closed with a click.

Kaze smiled to herself.

It certainly wasn't boring watching the young boy who could have been her cousin.

**Line Break  
**

The next morning Naruto, Ino, and Hinata, bright eyed and bushy tailed despite the previous evening's events, arrived at the Konoha Ninja Academy, which had been taken over for the chunin exams.

They walked slowly into the building, noting various teams from other hidden villages ahead of them.

Team 8 paused for a moment and shared a look before taking a deep breath and grinning. All three headed for the stairs and walked up to the next level.

As they walked along the corridor they were quickly faced with the sight of numerous teams all being blocked from entering the exam room by two rough looking Konoha shinobi.

But Naruto's sense of smell was telling him something was not right.

"Hinata." He said softly. "Check things out with your Byakugan."

Hinata nodded and triggered her Byakugan. After a moment she replied.

"It's a genjutsu. The two genin blocking the door are under henge, and there is an illusion making it look like the correct room, but we are still on the second floor."

"Then this must be the first part of the test. I say we keep quiet and move on to the correct chamber." Ino said coldly.

If the other teams were too stupid to realize it was an illusion, they deserved to fail the exams.

As Team 8 began to head up the second seby Uchiha Sasuke loudly and publicly decrying the two "genin" as being troublesome interferers and that they should drop the illusion and let him proceed to the actual room.

Naruto shook his head in disgust.

"Uchiha. He really is so arrogant it blinds him. I can't imagine what I'd do if I was on a team with that teme. I'd probably try to kill the bastard responsible." He muttered as he headed up the stairs, flanked by two gorgeous and decidedly deadly kunoichi.

Somewhere in the cosmos, on a small insignificant blue planet in a backwater corner of a spiral arm of the Milky Way Galaxy, Masashi Kishimoto sneezed violently.

"There you are. I was afraid you were going to be late." Yuhi Kurenai's voice rang out.

Naruto looked up to see Kurenai and several other Jounin instructors hanging out at the entrance to the real exam room.

"Do all three of you have your applications filled out?" A bored looking jounin leaning against the wall next to the closed double doors asked.

Naruto handed over a stack of three applications. The jounin checked them quickly before speaking again.

"Remember, you can only take the exam in a team of three, so if any of you are going to back out, do it now."

Naruto blinked and then rounded on his sensei.

"What's going on? You didn't tell us that part!" He complained loudly to his instructor.

Kurenai merely smiled back at Naruto.

"I needed to be sure that all three of you truly wished to take the exam, instead of choosing to take it so that your teammates could take it. I am sorry, but the deception was necessary." She said softly but firmly.

"Oh." Ino responded.

"Now, good luck you three. I have faith in you." Kurenai said, smiling and patting Naruto on the shoulder.

The blond grinned back at her before turning to face the double doors confidently.

After taking a deep breath Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto stepped forward, pushing the large double-doors open wide.

**Line Break/Chapter Complete**

AN: So, this chapter turned out to be twice as long as I originally expected it to be, but I am quite pleased with the result. I enjoyed writing it, particularly the scene where Ren takes Sasuke down a notch, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Obviously things are about to really heat up, what with the chunin exams beginning and all. And just what are the Pyromancers up to I wonder? And what is their interest in two known jinchuriki and the Uchiha?

On a more serious note, November 1st will mark the beginning of a grand tradition known as NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I will be 'competing' for the first time in three years, attempting to write a 50k+ word rough draft of an anime-style original novel. As such, there will likely not be as much progress on "Phoenix Rising" or "Konoha's Golden Viper." I will attempt to produce a chapter a week for both of them, but only after I've met my self-imposed weekly goal for working on my novel. If enough people pm me to show interest, I may kickstart my old fictionpress account and put the story up after the draft has been refined sometime in December. Also, come November, I may be working on several new fanfiction projects, including an original gundam verse, and an OLD Rockman project that has been in limbo for going on eight years now. I will however most certainly not be neglecting either of my current stories, as I am enjoying them far too much. I merely felt I should inform you, my loyal readers, as to the situation affecting my writing for the next month or so. But I have plotted out the next several chapters, up to the preliminaries of the chunin exams, and I am slowly working out very general outlines for the fights in the preliminaries as well. Of course, there will be a fight or two before then of course. shakes a fist angrily at Orochi-teme

As always, please remember to read and review. Everytime you leave a review, an Angel gets its wings. No, seriously, review people. Seeing new reviews show up in my inbox always brightens my spirits and encourages me to work harder on the writing. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 19: The First Trial.

**Translations**

Katsueki Kiba -- _Blood Fang_

**Review Responses** - Because it's illegal to lynch flamers in the lower forty eight states.

The Uchiha Itachi - the fourth person described was just to indicate that there was another fan user in the exams. He is no one important. As to the lizards and the messenger turtle, I'm not going to spoil anything quite yet.

Jack512 - well, the red lizards are a mystery wrapped in an enigma stuffed inside a gym locker. But don't worry. A lot about them will be revealed. Eventually. Maybe during the chunin exams.

jbalman - thanks for the encouragement. Naruto is a stamina freak, and I personally think that it is pretty clear that he could easily satisfy a woman, or three, for long periods of time without burning himself out.

InARealPickle - As youve noticed, I dont emphasize the streaks in his hair most of the time. Also, it was never intended to be a permanent addition. He's a teenager, and it's just a dye job he was trying for a while. This is actually becoming clear in the current chapter as he has chosen to wash said dye out of his hair. But as to your complaint in general, it's fanfiction. It can stay really close to the series, or it can diverge or even be changed horrendously. No one forces you to read stories you don't like, so if you have a problem with a character's appearance in a story, well then, just pick and choose which stories you wish to read. And for the record, I'm not a bloody teen. I chose those colors specifically because they were a bit garish with the blond hair, but at the same time they worked with his current taste in clothing.

Xynth - Thank you. This is why I always ask people to read and review, so they can point out when I've made a glaring mistake like this. You are correct, that I forgot that the ability to see and strike the tenketsu is actually a rarer ability in the Hyuuga. However, it was integral to the story that Hinata be a bit stronger than in canon. I seriously appreciate your pointing out my mistake to me, it will be a big help. I hope you've enjoyed the rest of the story (besides the error of course).

Moonfal - Why thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

landoffire - Well, here's the next chapter. Not much more revealed about Kabatsu's mysterious Pyromancers, but I'm pretty certain you've all figured out long before now that they appear to be aligned with Konoha, at least in the manner that they are not acting against Konoha's immediate interests.

ApatheticGhost - Wow. I really appreciate the compliment. It's always a pleasure to know that someone is enjoying the stories that I am writing. It gives me encouragement to keep working on the stories, as well as to gear up to work on others. While there will be more Naruto stories joining the lineup at some point in the future, there are also a few stories in other fandoms that I am eager to get started on as well. Against, major thanks for the compliment, and for the C2 add. Maybe you can start a discussion to get people watching your C2 to check out my fic?

Stefni - Why thank you, I am very glad that you approve of the way I have made Naruto in this story. I have actually been being careful not to overpower him, but still stick within the very clear realm of his abilities. At the age of twelve Naruto could take down or hold his own against Jounin level shinobi. That was WITH training that had obviously been sabotaged. So I just thought, what would he be like if he had actually been trained properly since birth. The result is this Naruto, who has very real power, but is still not some Madara level ultimate enemy thingy. As for the new people, the story is progressing as you can see. It will be really interesting now that the Chunin exams are beginning. Needless to say, there are a fair number of fights, character developments, and plot developments coming. And I hope you enjoyed the obligatory "Sasuke gets kicked in the nuts" presented in this chapter. I'm kind of figuring that this latest chapter has pretty much telegraphed that Sasuke is going to become a douchebag in the long run. But hey, Naruto needs a strong rival character to drive him.


	19. Chapter 19: The First Trial

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

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Chapter 19: The First Trial

As the doors swung open Team 8 was greeted with a rare sight. The room beyond the doors was filled with several hundred shinobi. While the large number of them were older Konoha shinobi, there was a fair number of teams from foreign nations, including, but not limited to, Kirigakure, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, and Sunagakure, the other four major shinobi villages.

Steeling themselves, the members of Team 8 stepped forward quietly into the room, their entrance never-the-less drawing the attention of the majority of the room's occupants.

Most of the shinobi sized them up with one thought.

No threat.

Given, most the people present in the room were easily in their twenties, but still, they should have known the first rule of being a ninja. Look beneath the underneath.

Naruto, who was wearing a new pair of elegant green-framed sunglasses with mirrored lenses, did not seem very intimidating to the other Chunin hopefuls. Neither did the two decidedly attractive kunoichi flanking him. In fact, compared to the red-haired sand-nin radiating killer intent in one corner, the Nagareboshi-genin carrying swords far too large for their size in another, and the team of really creepy Kusa-genin in the third corner, Team 8 was downright cuddly.

"Hey Naruto! MUNCH" Chouji called out from where Teams 10 and 11 were relaxing in the fourth corner, one of the two closest to the doorway. "You guys MUNCH made it."

Naruto chuckled as he and his two lovely teammates turned and made their way over to join the other present members of the Rookie 12 in the corner.

"Good, glad to see we aren't the only ones taking this exam." He chuckled as they stopped beside them. Naruto chose to lean against the wall next to Shikamaru, while Hinata and Ino both cornered Rukia to discuss girly things before the exams started.

It was only a couple more minutes before another Konoha team who only Naruto immediately recognized entered the room.

"Yo Lee!! Over here!!" Naruto called out, grinning and waving at the bushy browed green-clad genin.

Lee excitedly bounced over to the corner, while his two teammates chose a spot to lean against the wall a few feet away from the tight crowd of Konoha genin.

"YOSH!!! It is good to see that the fires of youth still burn inside of you Naruto-san!!"

Naruto, long since grown immune to the behavioral quirks of Maito Gai, and more recently of his protégé Rock Lee, chuckled and slapped the green genin on the shoulder.

"You have no idea my friend. And a good thing too, or I'd never be able to keep up with my two girlfriends." Naruto chuckled.

Lee's overly large eyes blinked for a moment before comprehension dawned on him.

"YOSH!!! THE FIRES OF YOUTH HAVE TRULY OVERFLOW IN YOU MY FRIEND!! I TOO HAVE FOUND MY ONE TRUE LOVE!!"

Naruto blinked and rubbed his ears. He may have become used to Lee's behavioral quirks, but he still wasn't used to Lee's loudness, even after having known the older genin for over a year.

"And just who would that be?" Naruto asked absentmindedly as he let his gaze drift around the room, taking in the competition.

He saw the strange Suna-nin Gaara standing in the far corner of the room grumpily, and in the nearer corner he caught sight of the fiery red hair of that mysterious Nagareboshi-genin with his back towards the present members of the Rookie Twelve. He appeared to be deep in discussion with a short girl with short pitch-black hair and almost pure black clothing.

"Her name is Sakura-chan, and she is the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen."

Naruto snorted and languidly turned his head to face his friend.

"Well, good luck with that Lee. I've met the girl a couple of times before, and she's a real bitch. And even if you get past that she is completely obsessed with that Uchiha fucker. Personally, she isn't worthy of you Lee. You're too nice."

Naruto sighed as Lee merely began defending Sakura's honor. He swore that boy could ignore the existence of a meteor crashing to the planet if it landed right on top of him.

"I'd take blondie's advice if I were you, bushy brows. I've seen the girl, and she was far from impressive." Sora's humor-laden voice came from behind Naruto.

The last Namikaze turned his head to find the three Nagareboshi-genin he recognized standing before him. They were flanked by another three he didn't recognize. The first was the short girl with black hair he had seen Sora talking to a minute earlier. The second was a tall girl with long, wild black hair and two feral-looking cats sitting on her shoulders. The third was a short boy with shockingly cobalt blue spiky hair, and two otters sitting on his shoulders.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Naruto wondered if Nagareboshi had some sort of institutionalized haircut program, as this made the third male shinobi from that village he had met, and all three had relatively similar hair cuts, spiky and untamed. Then again, maybe he was just imagining things.

Any reply or comment Naruto or Lee might have made was prevented by a sudden shouting from the entrance to the room.

"Yahoo!! Found you!!"

The current members of the Rookie Twelve and the six members of the Nagareboshi contingent all turned at the sound of Kiba's voice to find the wild genin standing with his hands in his pocket and, casting a lecherous look at the three Nagareboshi kunoichi, a comfy Akamaru sitting on his head, and a grumpy Sasuke and an annoyed Sakura standing behind him.

The members of Team 8 were instantly drawn to Sasuke's face, and the brilliant shiner he had over one eye, but they lost their chance to comment on it as several members of the Nagareboshi group seemed to have something to say.

"Keep your pants on you damn Inu. What the hell do you think this is? Your family kennel!?" Akane Nekozuka exclaimed loudly as she bent her knees slightly and clenched her fists, growling at Kiba.

Akamaru began growling right back at her, but after a few moments he felt it better to shut up when the two odd-smelling cats on the cat-smelling girl's shoulders began hissing at him, the fur on their backs standing up. Akamaru knew an Alpha when he met one, even if they were cats.

"Yeah!? And what the hell are you going to do about it Neko!?" Kiba shot back, his own hands clenched, restraining himself from striking.

"Hmph." Sasuke smirked. "Not more than thirty seconds in the exam and the dobe nearly gets himself into a fight."

Kiba ignored Sasuke, while behind him Sakura crossed her arms and nodded her head in support of her 'boyfriend.'

Behind Akane, Nobu was shaking his head as the two otters on his shoulders both stared, each eyeing a different one of the ninja flanking Kiba with a decidedly piercing look. Tsubaki was eyeing Sasuke with a cold, calculating gaze, her fingers twitching, prepared to fling shuriken from hidden slits in her sleeves at a moment's notice.

The situation certainly wasn't defused by what happened next.

"You're one to talk, Uchiha. You've very nearly picked fights with at least seven foreign teams in the week since we encountered you, not to mention nearly getting your asses whooped by my team. I'd say your partner here has done stratospherically more awesome compared to you." Domonami Ren said angrily as she stalked over and got right up in the Uchiha-teme's face.

What she had witnessed of him over the past week while she and her team did recon on the possible opponents had not earned him one iota of respect or good will.

"You are arrogant, abusive, and incompetent. You couldn't even sense two enemy shinobi sneaking up on you, and instead of taking that lesson to heart, you turned even more haughty and arrogant. If we had really been your enemies, you'd likely have been killed just for your attitude." Ren continued, poking Sasuke hard in the chest.

"So I'd watch your tongue, buddy. The later portions of these exams are no holds barred, and the next opponents you encounter might not be so forgiving." She snarled at the Uchiha heir.

Ren turned and marched off in a huff, her shorter blond teammate racing after her.

"Well pup, looks like there are bigger fish for us to fry." Akane said, breaking the shocked silence as fifteen Konoha genin blinked and stared at the retreating kunoichi's back in utter surprise. She stepped forward and stroked a severely surprised Kiba's cheek with her extremely sharp and pointed fingernails before giving him a peck on the cheek. "Catch you later, Inu."

Akane let the back of her fingers trail off Kiba's face as she turned and walked away, followed by Nobu and his two otters. Tsubaki instead kept a watchful eye on the members of Team 7, including a very red and confused Kiba, who was absentmindedly rubbing the cheek where Akane had kissed him.

"Huh. Well, that just ruined the mood." Sora said with humor glinting in his eye. He turned back to face Naruto before continuing. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around Naruto. I've heard a lot about what you can do. I sincerely hope you make it to the finals of the exam, because I'd enjoy a chance to go head to head with you."

Sora raised one hand absentmindedly in a wave as he walked away, followed by a wary Tsubaki.

"Jaa ne, Naruto." Sora said, grinning even though the blond Konoha genin couldn't see his face.

Naruto grinned and waved back absentmindedly as he turned to regard the rest of his fellow Konoha rookies, including a Sasuke who was clearly barely restraining his anger.

"Why that little!! How DARE she treat me like that!?" Sasuke ranted, barely restrained by his two teammates as he tried to stalk off after Ren. "I am an Uchiha!! I am the heir to the greatest bloodline in all of Konoha, and that little bitch dares to treat me like a commoner!! When I get my hands on her I-"

"Hey you guys, you should be more quiet."

Sasuke's tirade against the green-haired Nagareboshi kunoichi was swiftly cut off as a gentle male voice quietly but solidly cut through his ranting screams.

"You guys are the rookies just out of the Academy, right?" A Konoha-genin with long silver hair tied back in a ponytail, glasses, and wearing typical shinobi gear stood with one hand on his hip, and a slightly annoyed look on his face. He looked to be in his early twenties. "This isn't a picnic."

Most of the members of the Rookie Twelve were regarding the new arrival with various degrees of confusion, annoyance, or rage that their tirade against disrespectful foreign bitches had been interrupted. Surprisingly for Naruto and his teammates, Sakura was actually the first one to speak up.

"Who do you think you are?" She asked darkly, crossing her arms.

_**Seriously!! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU!?!**_ Inner Sakura screamed in her mind.

"I'm Kabuto." The silver-haired genin said, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "But before that, look behind you."

"Behind?" Sakura asked, slightly more subdued as she and her fellow rookies turned to look behind them.

They were rewarded for their effort by the sight of three nervous and glaring genin with really long blond hair and wearing hitai-ate depicting four vertical lines.

"Those guys behind you are from the Hidden Rain, and they have short tempers." Kabuto continued with a smirk as the rookies began to sweat. Only Naruto, Hinata, Shino, and Ino showed no outward signs of discomfort, although Naruto's eyes had narrowed behind his sunglasses. "Everyone is nervous about the exam, so quiet down before you cause a scene."

Shikamaru and Chouji at least had the good manners to look sheepish as they turned back to face Kabuto again. Sasuke was still barely containing his righteous fury, and Naruto's senses were now on high alert, as were his two teammates.

"Well, I can't blame you." Kabuto said, the hand on the pouch at his hip slowly pulling open a flap. "You are clueless rookies after all. You remind me of how I used to be."

"Kabuto-san…right?" Sakura asked hesitatingly. Inner Sakura was noticeably quiet.

"Yeah." Kabuto replied as his hand slipped into the pouch.

"So this is your second time?" Sakura finished asking.

"Nope…" Kabuto replied calmly. "My seventh time. The exam is held twice a year, so this is my fourth year."

"Wow, so you know a lot about this exam." Sakura said with a smile and a bit of amazement on her face.

"That's right." Kabuto replied with a smirk, his hand surreptitiously drawing a pile of blank cards with a kanji inscribed on the backs from the pouch.

"Wow, impressive." Naruto caught himself saying aloud, even though inside he had to wonder about how weak this Kabuto must be to have failed six times already.

"Hehe, then I'll share some info with you cute rookies." Kabuto chuckled as he held up a deck of the odd cards. "With these Nin-info cards…"

"Nin-info cards?" Sakura asked with a sweat drop on her face.

Next to her, Sasuke had calmed down considerably and was instead paying rapt attention to Kabuto.

"They are basically cards that have info burned on them with chakra." Kabuto said as he knelt and set the stack of cards on the ground. Around him, most of the Rookie Twelve were either kneeling as well, or looking over those that were. "I have four years worth of info here. Over two hundred cards…"

Kabuto moved one card off the pile with his finger. "They look blank, but to open the info on these cards…"

"What are you doing?" Ino asked, the blond kunoichi leaning over her boyfriend and supporting her self by placing a gloved hand on his shoulder.

"You can't view them unless I use my chakra, for example…"

A sudden wind blew up around the card as Kabuto focused his chakra into it. Suddenly the card glowed, and the blank surface was replaced with a holographic map of the elemental nations, including a graph with some info, and the symbols for numerous hidden villages displayed clearly on it.

"Wow." Naruto said, his interest finally piqued. "It's a really easy to read graph. I'm guessing it's a breakdown of all the competing teams this year?"

Kabuto nodded, impressed that any of these rookies had understood immediately. Perhaps he should keep a close eye on this one for his hidden masters.

"That's correct." He replied with a smirk.

"Do you have cards with info on individuals?" Sasuke piped up, his eyes narrow and his face in a glare.

"Hehe…there are some guys you're worried about?" Kabuto chuckled as he deactivated the map and returned it to the pile. "Of course…the info on all of this exams participants isn't perfect, but I do have it. Even of you guys. Say something about these guys and I'll take a look."

Sasuke smirked, his glare darkening. "Gaara of Sunagakure, Rock Lee from Konoha, and Sora and Ren from Nagareboshigakure."

"Oh, you know their names." Kabuto said. "Should be easy then."

Almost faster than the gathered genin could see, Kabuto shuffled through the deck of cards in seconds, ending with four cards in his hand.

"Show me." Sasuke said, growing more and more impatient to know about his opponents.

Kabuto channeled his chakra into the cards for a moment before revealing them one at a time to Sasuke and the other rookies. He began speaking, must like their old sensei Iruka back at the Academy would during a lecture. As he spoke, Sasuke noted that the diagram displaying Lee's abilities showed him to have high taijutsu and tool ability, but practically nonexistent ninjutsu and genjutsu capability, as well as a distinct lack of a kekkei genkai.

"Ok, first is Rock Lee. He's a year older than you guys. Mission History: D Rank- 50 Completed, C Rank – 22 Completed. His sensei is Maito Gai. His taijutsu has improved greatly in this year. The rest is nothing impressive." Kabuto paused to take a breath. "Last year he gained attention as a talented new genin, but he did not participate in the exam. Like you guys, this is his first time. On his team are Hyuuga Neji and Tenten Kuroda."

Kabuto deactivated the card and placed it back on the pile as he revealed the next card.

"Next is Sabaku no Gaara. Mission History: C Rank- 12, B Rank- 1. Wow, a B Rank mission as a genin. Since he's a newcomer from a foreign country, I don't have much info, but…" Kabuto drew out the 'but' as his audience leant forward, waiting with baited breath. "It seems he returned from all of his missions without even a scratch."

Despite his arrogance, even Sasuke looked a little nervous as beads of sweat ran down his face. The diagram on Gaara's card showed a question mark, showing how little information Kabuto had.

_What sort of monster comes away from a mission without even a scratch?_ He wondered as Kabuto put away Gaara's card and revealed the third card.

This card depicted a fiery red head, his diagram showing an intimidating array of ability. While the genjutsu portion indicated that he did not appear to have any particular aptitude for illusion, the taijutsu, ninjutsu, and tool pathways were all maxed out. On top of this, the Kekkei Genkai corner was marked with a question mark.

"Next is Kabatsu Sora. Mission History: D Rank- 30 Completed. C Rank- 23 Completed. B Rank- 6 Completed. A Rank- 1 Completed." Kabuto let out a low whistle at this point. "Because he hasn't participated in the exams before, despite being twenty years old, I don't have a whole lot of information on him. What information I do have on him is actually garnered from the Konoha Bingo Book, due partially to his association with his Jounin sensei, Kakkojimen Isamu, who is known as the Iron Turtle. What is known is that he is apparently quite skilled in elemental release techniques, as well as sword combat. Rumor has it that fighting him in close combat without a comparative weapon is like signing your own death sentence, and he is apparently ruthless when dealing with enemies during missions, tending to disembowel and dismember his fallen opponents before burning their bodies."

Kabuto secretly smirked as several of the rookies looked slightly sick. Good, that would make it easier to pull the wool over their eyes during the exams. Quickly he deactivated Sora's card and revealed the final card. It depicted a dark-green haired kunoichi. The diagram on the card depicted higher genjutsu skills than her teammate, with slightly lower taijutsu and ninjutsu skills. Her tool use was just as high though, and her bloodline was also suspiciously marked by a question mark.

"Finally is Domonami Ren. Mission History…hmm, exactly the same as Sora's. I guess they must have been on the same team as soon as they graduated the Academy…oh, here's why. Ren was a prodigy, who was graduated from the Academy several years younger than is normal for Nagareboshi." Kabuto let himself smile slightly. It was better after all if the cute rookies underestimated him and considered him fallible. "According to the info I've gathered, she appears to be a Suiton specialist, and is also skilled with her sword. While her taijutsu is marked as high, I don't know for sure how she compares to her teammate."

Kabuto shrugged and deactivated the final card, putting the cards away as he stood.

"Konoha, Suna, Iwa, Kumo, Kiri, Ame, Kusa, Hoshi, Taki, Nagareboshi, Oto…Many outstanding genins from the various hidden villages are here to take the exam." Kabuto paused and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well…Otogakure is a small village that was just created last year, so there isn't much info, but…the rest of the hidden villages are filled with talented youngsters."

Hinata and Ino flanked their boyfriend as he stood up, their hands on their hips.

"So basically, all the people here are…" Hinata began to ask.

"Yup!!" Kabuto replied enthusiastically. "They are the top elite genins from the various countries."

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Nearby, in a lounge chosen for them, a group of Jounin sat around, nervous even though they tried not to look it. Kakashi's nervousness was indicated by the decided absence of his favorite orange book. In one corner, Hayate and Asuma were playing a game of Chess, a western game that the swordsman had brought back from an A-rank mission the year before, while Kurenai and a Nagareboshi Jounin with braided blue-hair that reached nearly to the ground watched with mild interest.

In another corner, Kakkojimen Isamu was snoring loudly, surprising most of the other Jounin, who expected him to be just as nervous as they were. It was, after all, his team's first time attempting the exams too.

**

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**

Back in the exam room, Ichigo had just stood and shouted excitedly that he was gonna "Beat all you bastards!" to the entire room, earning him several hundred glares.

In the midst of the crowd, a trio of shinobi with a musical note on their hitai-ate narrowed their eyes at Kabuto, slightly miffed at how lightly he had dismissed their village.

"Hehe, Otogakure is a minor village?" A lanky shinobi with spiky brown hair said.

"Is that so?" A crouched man with his head wrapped in bandages replied as he turned his head to look at the group of Konoha rookies with his one visible eye.

"Let's play with them a little bit…" The third member of their team muttered softly in her sing song voice.

"Hehe, good idea." The bandaged man replied, his voice deepening. "Calling us leftovers…Let's help him add to his data…that Otogakure Shinobis…can be quite vicious."

In one corner of the room four Nagareboshi genin tracked the three Oto shinobi carefully with their eyes, watching, but not yet interfering.

_**It will be interesting to see how the pups react to an attack**_. Fenrir's deep, wolfish voice echoed in Ren's head. Nearby, three of her fellow shinobi nodded their heads, seemingly in response to the wolf's statement.

_That it will, Fenrir, that it will_. Ren replied with a smirk. Secretly, she was hoping the Uchiha-teme got his ass pounded. Maybe then it would be easierto corrupt that cute pink-haired chick that always followed Sasuke around. She was a challenge worthy of Ren's considerable skills at seduction.

"What the hell are you doing?!!" Ruka yelled as she wrapped her arm around Ichigo's throat and attempted to throttle him, beating Renji to it.

"I was just speaking the truth!!" Ichigo managed to get out as his teammate tried to choke the life out of him.

Rukia suddenly stopped as she noticed just how many glares were coming their way.

"E…everyone…it was just a joke…he's quite stupid."

In the midst of the crowd the bandaged man narrowed his eye. "Should we do it…"

A second later all three Oto-nins blurred and vanished, moving swiftly through the crowd towards the arrogant Kabuto. Kabuto sensed them coming and smirked, keeping his back towards them, preparing to react at the last second. Unnoticed by him, Naruto had already detected the threat, and he and his teammates were already moving to intercept.

The lanky man with the spiky hair leapt into the air and tossed two special knives towards Kabuto in an attempt to force him to dodge backwards, and distract him so his teammates could get close. Unfortunately, the two kunai were suddenly interrupted by a pair of thrown kunai that deflected them off course. He was in so much shock he didn't see the second pair of kunai until it was too late. By that point, he was already pinned to the ceiling and hanging by his shirt.

Meanwhile, the Oto kunoichi found herself suddenly boxed in by two glaring kunoichi, one of whom had a kunai held to the brunette's throat.

"Not another step." Hinata said icily as Ino relieved the Oto-kunoichi of the kunai she held in her hands.

Naruto, who had thrown the kunai, was already turning towards Kabuto when he saw the silver-haired genin dodge the bandaged man's attack, a strike that was best described as a haymaker.

For a moment it seemed like Kabuto had dodged it successively, Sasuke smirking and remarking to himself on Kabuto's 'good speed.'

Then Kabuto's glasses shattered, the lenses, falling to the floor. As the others watched in confusion, wondering how he had dodged the attack, yet still been hit, Kabuto removed his glasses and regarded them.

_I see…so it was that kind of attack…_ He thought to himself.

Any further thought or action by Kabuto was delayed, as he suddenly bent over and retched, throwing up all over the ground.

Kiba and Sakura immediately rushed to Kabuto's side.

"Kabuto!!! Are you alright?!!" Sakura asked as she crouched by the older genin.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kabuto lied, fighting not to throw up again.

Nearby, the three Oto-nins, freed from Team 8's counterattack, smirked and watched the Konoha shinobi with disdain.

"How pathetic, especially because, aren't you a four year veteran?" The bandaged man asked, his head cocked.

"Write this down on your cards. 'The three Otogakure ninjas, definite future Chunins.'" The lanky man said arrogantly.

Sasuke was still more interested in trying to figure out how Kabuto got hit.

Nearby, the members of Team 9 were quietly analyzing what had happened as well, trying to figure out the trick. An attack that could damage without direct connection was a dangerous proposition. Across the room, Sabaku no Gaara was finding himself quite disappointed by the useless and purposeless antics of the Oto and Konoha shinobi.

BAM!!!

There was a sudden explosion of sound and smoke from the front of the classroom.

"Quiet down you worthless bastards!!!" A deep masculine voice yelled out of the cloud of smoke.

When the cloud cleared, it revealed a stern looking man with several large scars on his face and wearing a black trench coat appeared, flanked by nearly thirty Chunin of various appearances, including two that Hinata recognized as having been the two disguised as genin on the second floor.

When the smoke had finally cleared the man, whose head was covered in a black wrap with his hitai-ate on his forehead, spoke with a smile and a slight smirk. "Thanks for waiting. I am Morino Ibiki, the examiner for the Chunin Selection Exam's first test."

Throughout the room, numerous shinobi instantly began to sweat as they felt the man's intimidating presence. Ibiki raised one hand and pointed towards the back of the room.

"Otogakure guys, stop doing as you please before the exam. Do you want to fail already?" He asked loudly and commandingly.

At the back of the room, the bandaged man looked at him and spoke. "I apologize. This is our first time. We got a bit carried away."

Ibiki lowered his forehead slightly and muttered. "Bah…"

Speaking loudly again, he continued. "Here's a good opportunity to say this…there will be no fighting without the permission of the examiner. Even if permission is granted, killing your opponent will not be tolerated."

Ibiki narrowed his eyes, letting a tiny, tiny amount of killing intent leak out. "Those pigs that disobey me will be failed immediately. Do I make myself clear?"

Around the room most of the shinobi became focused as the edges of a kunai.

"Heh, this exam is starting to sound easy." The lanky Oto-nin muttered to himself.

"We will now start the first test in the Chunin exam. Instead of your current seating arrangements, you will pick one of these tabs and sit in the seat assigned to you. We will then hand out the exams." Ibiki continued, holding up a small wooden tab with the number one inscribed on it.

In the back of the room Kiba nearly let out an outburst at the announcement that it was a paper test, but his pink-haired teammate clapped her hands over his mouth immediately.

It took several minutes, but finally all the participating ninja had been assigned seats and had taken them. Naruto had been surprised to find him self sitting next to the blue-haired boy from the Nagareboshi contingent. The boy had introduced himself quietly as Nobu before becoming focused on the front of the room, where Ibiki stood impassively. Naruto was curious about the boy's otters, but decided to prepare for the test instead.

Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto hated bookwork. He was much more a physical learner. However, his mother had instilled enough of a work ethic in him when it came to book work that he would hopefully do passably well on this portion of the exam.

"Do not turn your tests over. Listen closely to what I'm about to say." Ibiki's commanding voice rang out through the classroom as he picked up a piece of chalk.

"There are many important rules to this first test." He continued as he reached over and began to write on the board, still facing and focused on the room full of Chunin-hopefuls. "I'll write it on the board while I explain, but questions will not be allowed, so listen carefully."

In the middle of the room Haruno Sakura, who had only managed to graduate from the Academy thanks to her bookwork, began to get nervous.

_Rules? No questions allowed?_ She thought to herself, worried about the exam again.

"The first rule. You guys will all start off with ten points. The test is made up of ten questions, and each one is worth a point but…this test uses a subtraction system." Ibiki continued as he faced the blackboard, writing up the rules as he went along. "Basically, if you answer all the questions correctly, you keep your ten points. But say if you miss three questions…you lose three pints and will have seven. The second rule…this is a team test. Whether you pass or not will be determined by the combined score of your teammates."

There were various muted mutterings from around the room at this announcement.

"So, each team will compete to see how many points they can hold on to from the initial team total of thirty."

Naruto noticed that the two otters sitting on his neighbor's shoulder were chittering rapidly back and forth, and even weirder, that his neighbor seemed to be chittering along with them.

"Now, the most important rule." Ibiki continued with a smirk. "The third rule is that during the exam…anyone caught by the testing officers doing sneaky activities, namely cheating, will have two points subtracted for every offense. So there will be some who will lose all their points during the exam and be asked to leave."

"We'll have our eyes on you guys." One of the Chunin who had taken up seats around the room said as he leant back in his chair.

Around the room, several genin smirked as they realized what the real purpose of the test was. They all began preparing their various methods of information gathering.

"Realize that the pathetic ones that get caught cheating will be destroying themselves. As shinobi, trying to achieve the level of Chunin, be proud ninjas." Ibiki continued. "And the final rule. Those that lose all their initial points during the test and those that don't answer any questions correctly…will be failed along with their two teammates."

Around the room, most of the first timers nearly freaked out in shock and surprise at this announcement.

"The exam will last one hour." Ibiki said with all seriousness. "Ok….BEGIN!!"

The room was suddenly abuzz with activity. Around the room, various people began to prepare their cheating methods.

Unobtrusively, Sabaku no Gaara began to collect sand around his hand, forming it into a small floating eye, which he dispatched to discretely spy on the other exam takers, looking for the correct answers

In the back of the room Hinata discretely used her Byakugan and scanned until she found someone who seemed to know the answers, and began copying him.

The three Oto ninja performed a similar procedure, although they appeared to be listening to the sound of someone writing and replicating his motions.

Ino, also near the back, instead sat back and waited. She knew that Sakura would be smart enough to answer the questions, so she resolved to just sit back and wait, and use the Shintenshin to steal the answers from Sakura once she finished.

At three different points around the room, Inuzuka Kiba, Nekozuka Akane, and Ameshira Nobu all had their assorted animal companions sitting on their heads or shoulders, scanning and reporting on the answers they could see. Sitting next to Nobu, Naruto noticed this and chuckled, before he closed his eyes and focused on his enhanced senses.

_Ok Kyuubi. Let's see if this will work._

_**I already told you that it will Kit. Just have faith that I know what I'm doing.**_

Naruto opened his eyes, which had turned a faint purple. Looking to his right discretely, he was able to see Nobu's paper, in perfect detail. Having a demon fox trapped inside you had some perks after all.

The members of Team Eleven seemed to (mostly) be actually trying to solve the problems while Ichigo, predictably, had fallen asleep and was drooling on his exam paper.

Most of the members of the Nagareboshi contingent seemed to be gathering the answers in some discreet manner or other, with the exception of Sora, who was scribbling frantically on his exam paper. But rather than seem worried or nervous or manic, he seemed to be amused by something, laughing every couple of minutes. Ibiki watched him closely, impressed by how the young redhead seemed to radiate an aura of complete relaxation, particularly in a place where he should have been on the edge of his nerves. He also noted the red-haired Suna-nin was also calm, but he didn't have the same aura of relaxation.

Shino was using his bugs to not only get the answers, but also report them to his two teammates discretely, while Tenten was using a mirror to pass the answers to Lee, and Hyuuga Neji was using his Byakugan just like Hinata.

And the Uchiha-teme was, predictably, using the Sharingan to copy the movements of someone who seemed to know the answers.

It was only a couple of minutes into the exam when a kunai flew through the air and thunked into the exam paper of one of the examinees.

"Number 23, you've been caught cheating five times. You and your two teammates please exit the exam room. You've failed."

The three Kirigakure shinobi muttered and got up and left.

After forty minutes had passed Kankuro, the Suna shinobi who dressed in black and wore kabuki face paint, stood and asked to use the restroom. He was escorted out of the exam room by one of the examiners.

A minute later Ibiki stepped back up to the front and called for attention. It was time for the tenth and final question.

"Now, before we get to it, I'd like to go over the added rules for this question." Ibiki said seriously from the front of the room, drawing nervous and confused looks from the teams that had managed not to get disqualified for cheating. Just then the door open and Kankurou returned, flanked by the Chunin.

"Hehe. Nice timing." Ibiki said, confusing Kankuro slightly. "Was your doll beneficial?"

Kankurou blanched. _He…saw through Karasu…?_

"Just sit down." Ibiki said dismissively. As Kankuro walked towards his seat Ibiki continued. "I'll now explain…these are…the rules of desperation."

**

* * *

**

Back in the Jounin lounge, the instructors of the Rookie Twelve were discussing the first exam, and explaining to Kurenai about Morino Ibiki. In one corner of the room, a seemingly sleeping Kakkojimen Isamu opened his eye a crack to pay better attention. Ibiki was a person of interest to the Ryuukage, after all. It therefore wouldn't do for him to sleep through a chance to gather information on the Tokubetsu Jounin.

**

* * *

**

"First, for this tenth question…you must decide whether you will take it or not."

"CHOOSE?!!" Sabaku no Temari exclaimed in surprise. "WHAT HAPPENS IF WE CHOOSE NOT TO?!!"

Ibiki closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again he was leaking just the tiniest amount of killing intent. "If you choose not to, your points will be reduced to zero…YOU FAIL! Along with your two teammates."

"What does that mean?!!" A Kumo nin cried out, breaking his pencil in half. His neighbor joined in. "Then of course we will decide to take the question!"

"And now…the other rule." Ibiki continued, deadly serious. "If you choose to take it…and answer incorrectly…that person will lose the right to ever take the Chunin Selection Exam again."

"What kind of stupid rule is that?!!" Kiba exclaimed, Akamaru barking on his head. He was about due for a loud outburst anyways, as it had been over a half an hour since his last one. "There are guys here who have taken the exam before!!!"

Ibiki chuckled evilly. "You guys were unlucky. This year it's my rules. But I am giving you a way out. Those that aren't confident can choose not to take it…and try again next year."

Ibiki waited a few moments as the various stressed out teams around the room contemplated their options. Finally, he spoke again. "Now, let's begin…the tenth question. Those that do not wish to take it, raise your hand. One your number is confirmed, leave."

There was silence for several long moments. To their credit, non of the Konoha rookies really considered any other option than going for it.

"I won't take it." A bearded man in his twenties wearing a Konoha hitai-ate cried out as he raised his hand. "I'm sorry…Gennai, Inoho…"

As they were announced as failing the man and his two teammates stood and walked out of the room together. Slowly a tide built of various people giving up and being announced as failing.

As he watched with some amusement, Ibiki saw the intriguing red head from Nagareboshi begin to raise his hand for a moment…before slamming it down on the desk in front of him.

"Don't underestimate me!! I will not run!! I'll take it!! Even if you could enforce your stupid rules on the other hidden villages and cause me to be stuck as a genin forever, I would just become the first genin to ever ascend to leadership of a hidden village!! You can bet on it!!"

Ibiki's eyes narrowed. "I'll ask you again. Your life is riding on this decision. This is your last chance to quit."

Sora smirked and leant forward over his desk, his spiked hair dropping down to frame his eyes. "I follow my unbending words. That's MY nindo, and it's as unwavering as my faith in my teammates. We WILL pass your tenth question."

Around the room numerous people smiled in spite of themselves at the tall red head, at the fierceness and determination in his eyes and his voice. A blond girl with her hair in four spiky ponytails and a black haired girl with it cut short and framing her face both regarded the fierce red head with a mixture of hero adoration and lust.

_Interesting kid. He blasted away everyone's worries. Seventy eight left...more than I expected…_

Ibiki looked to the side, where several of his Chunin proctors were nodding and smiling towards him.

_Stretching this any longer won't make any difference..._

"Good decisions. Now, to everyone still remaining…"

Everyone in the room except the practically supernaturally calm pair of red heads leant forward, nervous but excited.

"I congratulate you on passing the first test!!"

Everyone in the room looked confused for a few moments, before some high pitched ringing laughter suddenly pierced the stunned silence.

Gouzenkaze Arashi had leant back in his chair and was laughing his ass off. As far as the diminutive blond was concerned, Ibiki had just pulled a grade-A prank on the examinees.

"To the seventy-eight who remain…congratulations on passing the first test!!"

"Wait…what do you mean?" Sakura asked, confused. "We already pass? What about the tenth question?"

Ibiki smiled widely and sincerely. "There never was such a thing. Or you could say that those two choices were the tenth question."

"Hey!! Then what were the first nine questions for?!!" Sabaku no Temari cried out. "They were pointless then!!"

"They were not pointless." Ibiki replied. "They had already served their intended purpose. To test your individual information gathering ability…that purpose."

Ibiki was suddenly a grinning, jovial person, not at all the intimidating man radiating small amounts of killer intent he had been just minutes before.

"Basically, the premise of this exam is to cheat. But those that cheat poorly… they fail of course." Ibiki said, reaching up and removing his head wrap. It revealed his bare scalp, which was covered with burn scars, massive amounts of scar tissue, and screw holes. Clear signs of torture.

"Because…at times, information is more important than life…And on missions and on the battlefield, people risk their lives to get their hands on it. If the enemy or third party notices you…there is no guarantee the info will be accurate…"

Scattered around the room, the three members of Team Turtle absentmindedly rubbed different points on their bodies. There were no scars, but their minds still remembered the pain of the torture they had once undergone at the hands of the Renegade.

Ibiki grew more serious. "I want you to remember this. Important information in your hands…can be a powerful weapon for your comrades and for the village. So we had you gather information through cheating. This clearly separated those that did not have the right abilities." Ibiki finished, retying his head wrap back onto his skull.

"But…I don't understand the final question." Temari asked, almost petulantly. She instantly regretted it as she saw Sora smirk disdainfully.

Ibiki merely smiled brightly again. "But question ten, is the true purpose of this test. The tenth question, the 'Take It' or 'Not Take It' decision…obviously there were painful choices. Those who choose the latter fail along with their teammates. Those who choose to take it…could lose the chance to ever take the test again. A true leap of faith."

Ibiki paused for a moment before continuing. "How about these two choices…say you guys become chunins. Your mission is to steal a secret document. The amount of ninjas, their abilities, etc. is unknown to you. And of course there could be traps set all around you. Now, do you accept, or not accept? Because you don't want to die…because you don't want your comrades hurt…can you avoid the dangerous mission?"

Ibiki's eyes narrowed. "The answer is no!! No matter what the danger…there are missions you can't avoid. The ability to be courageous and survive any hardship…this is the ability needed to become a Chunin capatain. Those who can't put their destinies on the line…who cling to the uncertain future of 'there's always next year' and then walk away from their chance. Those pieces of trash who can only make such cowardly choices…don't have the right to become a Chunin…that's how I feel!!"

"Those who choose to take it…answered the tough tenth question correctly. You will be able to survive any troubles you face in the future. You have made it through the entrance. The first test of the Chunin Selection Exam is now finished. I wish you guys luck."

Ibiki saw Uzumaki Naruto smirking in one corner of the room.

_That boy is interesting. Unlike a lot of these examinees, I couldn't figure out how he was acquiring his information._

Ibiki turned his focus to Sora next.

_Same with him. He is certainly an intriguing fellow. Too bad he isn't a Konoha shinobi. I'd almost want to take him on as an apprentice._

Ibiki suddenly looked to the right, sensing a fast approaching chakra signature.

Suddenly a black figure plowed through the windows and the wall, slamming into the room just before him. Kunai attached to a black cloth banner shot out from the figure, embedding themselves in the ceiling as the figure unrolled itself into a standing position.

_Geez…not this one…_ Ibiki thought to himself.

Revealed to the entire room, sans Ibiki who was behind the banner, was a massive black banner wth white writing that introduced the examiner for the second part of the exam. Standing in front of the banner was a purple-haired kunoichi who was wearing a tan trench coat and miniskirt, and a form-fitting mesh body suit. To those paying enough attention, they could tell that she had nothing else covering her chest. This distracted several lecherous members of the room, while a couple others merely quietly appreciate what was clearly a fine and deadly specimen of a kunoichi.

Naruto groaned as he realized who the second examiner was.

"You guys!!! This is no time to be celebrating!!!" She said loudly and harshly.

From the back of the room a voice that Ibiki had grown to recognize spoke up.

"Are you kidding? We just passed the first part of the exam, and we get a truly deadly and drop dead sexy kunoichi for an examiner for the second part. I'd say it's the perfect time to be celebrating."

Anko had to blink at the admittedly attractive red head who had spoken before smiling slightly. His fierce eyes and demeanor practically screamed predator to her. While other girls might have been scared or intimidated by this, Anko only had one thought.

_If this punk survives the next part of the exam I'm gonna have to get me some of him._

Sora, who had become well versed in recognizing when a girl is interested in him, merely smirked and leant further back in his chair. On the other side of the room, Shinomori Tsubaki glanced over at him with a matching smirk.

_Gorgeous, deadly, and probably an animal in bed. Score one for you Scales._ She thought, her mind already imagining the possibilities Mitarashi Anko might present.

"I am the examiner for the second test!! Mitarashi Anko!! Now Let's Go!! Follow Me!!" Anko cried out, her voice louder now as she raised one arm in the air.

None of the examinees moved.

"Bad timing…" Ibiki said as he stepped around the banner finally, Anko's exuberance dying as no one responded.

"Seventy eight!? Ibiki!! You left twenty six teams?!!" Anko railed at the tall man next to her. "The test was too easy this time!"

Ibiki smirked. "This time…there are a lot of outstanding ones." His gaze flicked to Naruto and Sora in emphasis.

Anko looked back at the genins in front of her. "Bah, that's fine. I'll at least cut them in half in the second test."

In the middle of the room, several of the Konoha rookies tensed up.

"Ahhh…I'm getting excited…I'll explain everything once we've changed places. Follow me." Anko said firmly, still grinning that sadistic grin of hers.

As she walked out of the room, the seventy eight remaining genin stood and followed her. Ibiki could tell that most of them were nervous, or on edge. Naruto and his teammates were merely apprehensive, the two girls because they had met the Tokubetsu Jounin on several occasions and been simultaneously scared and impressed by her, and Naruto because he had partaken in what she considered training. The Nagareboshi contingent were practically the opposite. Several of them were merely calm, but Sora and Tsubaki both looked almost excited.

Little did he know that what they were really excited about was the examiner, not the second exam.

His Chunin proctors had shunshined away as soon as Anko had appeared, and as he slowly walked through the room collecting the papers Ibiki mused over those who had passed the exam. He saw Naruto's paper, and was pleased to see that the young blond had clearly gotten all the answers correct. Finally, he found a paper that surprised him.

The paper was completely blank, except for the name on it. Kabatsu Sora. Ibiki was momentarily confused, as he had clearly seen the red-headed Nagareboshi-nin writing rapidly during the exam.

Ibiki shook his head as he picked up the paper, and then froze as he caught sight of the back of the paper. Turning it over, he was greeted with a sight that had the ANBU torture specialist laughing uproariously.

Rather than take the exam, Kabatsu Sora had somehow divined its true purpose. The back of the paper was a massive complex of diagrams and calculations under the balloon label "How to Prank the Lying Examiner". Ibiki continued to laugh as he looked over the paper, which included calculations for everything from angles to flick a pebble so it would hit Ibiki in the head, to ways to layer chakra for a…

Ibiki barely leapt aside in time as the chakra stored up in the paper he had just dropped exploded outward, dying the desk and chair a dark blue in a three foot radius.

Ibiki's laughter continued, scaring those who passed the room.

Kabatsu Sora had very nearly pranked Morino Ibiki, Konoha Tokubetsu Jounin and ANBU torture specialist.

For the second time in one year, Ibiki was impressed by the talents of a mere genin.

* * *

AN: First, yes, some portions of this ran pretty much close to canon, but I did not see a need or reason to change what worked there, particularly as it worked to layer stuff as I wanted. Obviously there weren't any REAL fight scenes yet, but next chapter will certainly have them. I've been working slowly on this chapter around my other writing, and since I just finished it I decided to put it up. I have also been formulating the ideas for another story, which if you have me on author alert or you check my profile, you will see. It's called "Legacy of the Planet", and is another Naruto story. I highly recommend you check it out. It should be up sometime in the next day or two, as soon as I get it back from a friend of mine who is helping do limited beta-work for it.

A note on appearances. All three male Nagareboshi genin have supernaturally spiky hair, varying in length. Tsubaki's hair is best described as like Soi Fon from Bleach, but without the two trailing lines. I imagined her hair the way I wanted, and then later realized that Soi Fon was the best example of the idea, to make it easier for people to understand what she looks like.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter/episode of "Phoenix Rising." If anyone is actually curious, I might give you the songs I consider the opening and ending themes for this story. Please remember to read and review. it always makes my day and encourages me to keep writing. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 20: Journey into Death.

**Review Responses** – Because even if I'm busier than Shiva, you deserve to hear back from me.

Jack512 – Well, keeping you guys hanging is part of the fun. That and the story is massively complex, and what you have seen barely scratches the surface. As to not updating much, it is a shame, but fear not. I've been working steadily on this chapter all week, as well as the initial stages of preparing a third Naruto story that my friend has been helping me fact-check on. I wrote six thousand words of my original novel earlier today, then came home and began final editing on this chapter to put it up for you guys to read and enjoy.

Kyubbi-Sama – glad you are enjoying it. And here is the latest update.

samueltm2 – I was trying for interesting. Takes a lot of work too, but I personally feel the final result is worth it.

Moonfal – Well, I will take that as a major compliment. Thank you very much. I try my best with these stories, not just for myself, but also for you, all of you, my readers, who choose to take the time to read what my crazed and creative mind comes up with. Hopefully all of you will be interested in reading my original story when it's completed. I'm only about ten thousand words into it so far, but I'm completely in love with the characters and world I am creating.

gunnslie – My feelings on the Uchiha-teme are mixed. I decided to treat him one way in this story, while in my others he's being treated differently. Of course, for the latest project in the wings, I'm really not sure how I'll play it. It all depends how close to canon I keep things in it.

Knives91 – Thank you for the encouragement. I'm already loving how my story is coming together. And for the groaning keyboard thing, well, I wrote over six thousand words in three hours today. It's amazing what a spectacular cup of hot chocolate, a peanut butter cookie, and a near endless supply of Luna Sea, High and Mighty Color, and Naruto music can do for my writing.

naruto_master…your name is too bloody long – Anyways, here's the next update. Enjoy.

dbtiger63 – Review Response #1 – Well thank you. I put a lot of work into the fight scenes, and into trying to describe them in such a way that you all can see them the way I see them in my mind. Some writers have to go at writing fight scenes clinically, constructing it with words. I listen to music, and I watch the fight scene play out again and again in my head visualizing everything. Then I do my best to translate that vision into words. I'm very honored that you are considering this some of the best kickass fanfiction you've ever seen. If you ever want, I can provide a selection of other fanfics (Naruto and otherwise) which I have favorited. My favorites list is normally just used so I can keep track of fics, even if they aren't my favorites, so it's best to ask me which I'd suggest.

As for the detail, the jutsu definitions, etc., it's how I think and write. I built the story as much around the character's interpersonal relationships as around the combat. The format I am using for the jutsu definitions is borrowed from Tellemicus Sundance, as was one technique I've introduced already. His story, Legacy of the Rasengan, is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING, and along with EroSlackerMicha's works, previously mentioned to you all as mberhns2002 (I think. He changed his name so I can't confirm), was responsible for me finally getting my act together and really getting started on Phoenix Rising. So you can thank both of them for their stories both on their own merit, and on the merit that they inspired me to really write.

dbtiger63 – Review Response #2 – Thank you. My story is coming along well so far, and the characters are developing on their own like living entities. I had a massive writing spurt earlier today, and by the end of it I had developed some characters in ways I never imagined when I started it. Also, I am about sixty percent done with the first chapter of my third Naruto fic project, which has come together much faster and easier than I originally expected, although due to needing to research the crossover world more thoroughly, will likely be updated more slowly. I simply don't know as much about the world of Final Fantasy VII without needing constant research and content checking from my friends to write the story properly.

Thank you again. Hopefully you enjoyed the Sasuke getting his family jewels crushed scene. Thanks, Team Turtle has been really fun to write and create, particularly as each new Nagareboshi character I developed added new levels of complexity to the relationships and interaction. As to the Pyromancers, those are one of my favorite creations. There is far, far more to them than has been shown so far, and I will enjoy when I can finally reveal more about them to my readers.

And yes, you may ask. I won't spoil too much, but I will say that "The Phoenix" will span a very long period of time. Phoenix Rising is basically the first series of Naruto, while the two sequels are, effectively, the time skip/training mission and the second series of Naruto. I will say this. Naruto will receive the recognition of the villagers eventually, although I really, really do not want to spoil anything. All I'll say is that the end of "The Phoenix" is practically written. Everything is just leading up to a goal. As to how powerful Naruto is, well, you'll see. You'll also see him get much more powerful as events and fate shape his destiny. Things are going to get very hectic soon, and while I refuse to spoil anything specifically, a very important protagonist will be left lying dead by the time the Chunin Exams are over.

As to the Naruto having multiple mates thing, that is something that is often very poorly written. Thankfully all the stories that I read that involve it right it very well and are well thought out, but I have been turned off of fics because they wrote it badly. I do my best to really think through the events and situation leading up to it before I even begin writing such a relationship. Here, I saw a way to easily bring it together, and I worked hard to make sure I wrote it, slowly but surely.

Next chapter will probably be sometime next week, but only if I can get ahead in my work on my original story, and only after I manage to write the next chapter of Konoha's Golden Viper. Lachesis needs love too ya know.


	20. Chapter 20: Journey into Death

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 20: Journey into Death

Team 8 arrived at the designated location roughly fifteen minutes later, one of the last teams to arrive. The muster point for the second exam was a grassy field outside of a gated fence, beyond which lay the most massive, wild looking forest that most of the remaining combatants had ever seen.

Naruto shook off any nerves, as Anko had taken him into the training ground multiple times before he was allowed to take the genin exam. Ostensibly it had been to toughen him up, but Naruto really knew it was simply because it was one of the few places in Konoha that Anko truly felt alive.

In the back of his mind, as he stood calmly flanked by his two teammates, Naruto noticed that the members of Nagareboshi contingent appeared to be not just at ease, but downright excited. Not for the first time since the exam started Naruto found himself wishing he had looked up more information on the country they were from.

Around the field, which included a booth with a curtain that could be used to obscure the three shinobi proctors sitting behind a table, the remaining twenty six teams gathered, milling about while they awaited the arrival of the examiner and the start of the second, decidedly harder, section of the Chunin Selection Exams.

"This is creepy…" Naruto heard Sakura mutter from where Teams 7, 10, and 11 were all standing close together nearby.

"Bah." Mitarashi Anko's voice came as a swirl of leaves appeared on top of the wooden booth, revealing a smirking Mitarashi Anko standing on top of it. "You'll soon find out why it's called the 'Forest of Death."

Around him Naruto heard various people nervously repeating Anko's words, clearly wondering just what they had got themselves into.

"Chya right. Like this forest is anything to be scared of. Mother used to drop me off with nothing but a rusty kunai and some water inside a place twice as dangerous as this on a monthly basis."

Naruto turned at the sound of Sora's voice to find the red-haired shinobi directing his comments towards his colleagues even as it was clear he had intentionally spoken loud enough for Anko to hear. Tsubaki giggled, and the green-haired girl Naruto remembered as Ren had a funny smile on her face.

_Hmm, it's that guy from the first part. He's got even more spunk than I thought._

"Hmm, you're pretty spirited." Anko said with a smile forming on her lips.

SWISH

Naruto nearly jumped as a kunai flew from Anko's out stretched arm and past Sora, cutting his cheek as it passed and imbedding itself in the ground an inch away from Naruto's foot. Before anyone could react Anko had appeared behind Sora, wrapping her arms around him suggestively as she leant her ample bosom against his back. Freaking out several of the younger genin, Anko then proceeded to lean around the side of his head and lick up the blood that was dripping down his cheek.

"I'd be careful. This exam tends to spit up pretty boys like you, spraying that delicious red blood that I love so much everywhere." Anko practically purred into Sora's ear.

Many of the gathered Konoha rookies looked sick at this statement.

"Mmmmm, looks like you picked a good one Scales." Tsubaki interrupted, stepping up until she was almost as close to Sora as Anko was.

As if to emphasize a point, the shorter girl stood on her toes to get close enough and licked along the still bleeding cut, winking suggestively at Anko.

"She certainly shares in at least one of our eccentricities. But I wonder how long she would last in bed?" Tsubaki stepped backward and put a finger to her chin in a thoughtful motion.

"I'm not sure Tsubaki. Maybe we'll just have to find out." Sora said with a smirk before twisting down and out of Anko's grip, flourishing a bow before doing a back flip to land beside the still grinning Tsubaki.

Anko smirked and placed her hands on her hips. "Careful what you wish for gaki. I might just take you up on that offer."

Sora and Tsubaki looked at each other in mock confusion. Around them multiple shinobi either shifted away nervously, or smiled knowingly.

"Offer? I don't remember giving her an offer, do you lover?" Sora asked of Tsubaki, gazing into her eyes as he stroked her cheek.

"No lover, I do not. I remember giving her a challenge though." Tsubaki said as she gazed back, reaching up to trace a finger along the cut on Sora's face.

Unnoticed by all present, as she wiped away the blood her hand was revealing clear, perfect, uncut skin where mere moments before had been a bleeding wound.

Both genin turned their heads back to grin at Anko.

"Touche brats. I'll see you after the exam finishes." Anko said, turning to face the bulk of the examinees. "If you survive that is."

Around the field numerous people shivered as they remembered what Anko had said about the exam so far.

"Now, before we start the second test, there's something I have to pass out." Anko yelled loudly and authoritatively, holding up a pile of forms in her right hand. "You must sign these agreement forms. There will be deaths in this exam, and if I don't have you sign these, it will all be my responsibility."

Anko paused for a moment and gazed out of the now mostly-nervous group of genin. The purple-haired jounin's smile was creeping them all, making many wonder if continuing to take the exam was actually worth it.

"I'm going to explain the second test, and you can sign the forms afterwards. Each team will check in at that booth behind me." Anko continued, pointing over her shoulder with her thumb. "Now, to explain the second test. Well, simply put, you will attempt the ultimate survival test. First I'll explain the arena."

Those near enough to him could practically hear Nara Shikamaru thinking 'troublesome.'

"Special Training Area 44, colloquially known to the Konoha Ninja Corps as the Forest of Death, is a circular training arena twenty kilometers across. It is a massive forest full of dangerous creatures, and is bisected by a massive river. This river runs past and forms a moat around a massive tower that is situated at the precise center of the area. The fence that surrounds the arena contains forty four locked gates, each set equidistantly around the circle. This means that the tower is about ten kilometers from any gate."Anko said, as she held up a map diagram of the arena for the gathered genin to see. "During the survival exam in here, you will be asked to complete a certain tast. Using your many weapons and jutsu, you will complete in a no rules, Anything-Goes scroll battle."

Anko's expression darkened as she held up a pair of scrolls, one white and one black.

"Scroll?" One of the gathered genin asked.

Anko's grin deepened. "Yes. You will fight over these two scrolls, the 'Heaven' and 'Earth' scrolls." Anko turned the scrolls over to reveal the symbol for Heaven on the white scroll and the symbol for Earth on the black scroll. "There are twenty six teams remaining. Half will receive the 'Heaven scroll,' and half will receive the 'Earth scroll.' In order to pass this test, your team must make it to the tower with both scrolls."

Anko smirked as she saw understanding dawn in the eyes of many of the genin standing before her.

"But there is a time limit. This second test will last one hundred and twenty hours, exactly five days."

"What about dinner?!!!!!!"

Naruto jammed his fingers into his ears to protect against the sudden outburst from Chouji of Team 10.

"You're on your own. The forest is full of food. Just watch out for man-eating beasts, poisonous insects, poisonous plants…" Anko trailed off, looking back up and smirking at the examinees. "And thirteen teams passing is not likely. As the days go on, the distance to the goal will become farther, and the time to rest will become shorter. And sicne the area is crawling with enemies, you won't get much sleep. So not only will some fail by losing the scroll but some will die from the harshness of the course."

Anko's smile brightened as she witnessed the examinees grow even tenser at this announcement.

"Now I'll tell you what will disqualify you." Anko said, raising her hand and holding up one finger. "First, those that don't make it to the tower, with both scrolls, within the time limit." Anko raised a second finger. "Second, those who lose a teammate or those who have a teammate killed. As a rule there is no quitting in the middle. You will be in the forest for five days."

Anko tucked her hands into her pockets.

"And one more rule. You must not look inside the scroll until you make it to the tower."

"What happens if you do?" Naruto heard Ichigo ask, the strawberry-blond shinobi leaning on the massive sword he had somehow procured.

"That will be a surprise for anyone who does." Anko replied, smirking. "A Chunin will be asked to handle classified information. This is to test your trust-worthiness. That is it for the explanations. Exchange the three forms for your scroll over at the booth, then choose a gate to get ready for the start. You have one hour."

Anko began to turn to walk towards the booth and then paused, looking back at the examinees.

"One last word of advice. Don't die." Anko's face lacked a grin as she said this.

Around the field, seventy eight shinobi narrowed their eyes in determination.

Anko's smirk returned as she watched the various teams think over their forms, and just what signing those forms mean.

"So, shall I assume that you accept our challenge? Assuming we make it out of the exam alive of course."

It was a testament to her self-control that Anko didn't leap away from, maim, kill, stab, or knock unconscious the figure who had appeared behind her without her detecting him. Sora smirked as Anko turned slowly to face him, her eyes narrowed. Sora stood with his left arm around the much shorter Tsubaki's shoulders as the black-haired kunoichi leant against the taller red head.

"You are a very interesting person, Kabatsu Sora. Yes, I looked up who you were on the way here. I'm surprised a shinobi with your record would be playing around with me. I'm certain you must have read about me in your bingo book." Anko said, placing her hands on her hips.

Both Sora and Tsubaki smiled genuine smiles that still carried the edge of a predator in them.

"Oh, we certainly did. Scales here was just hoping for a chance to meet you, and what do you know? You turn out to be our exam proctor." Tsubaki said, practically purring as she traced the tip of a kunai along Sora's bare cheek.

Anko smirked. "Well, we'll have to see how you two handle your liquor first, if you survive the exam of course."

Anko turned and waved goodbye as she continued towards the booth.

Behind her, Sora and Tsubaki both narrowed their eyes, Anko momentarily forgotten as their eyes settled on a trio of Kusa-nin crouched near the edge of the field.

"I don't like the feel I get from them. I mean, most of the other teams will be a cakewalk if we encounter them, and those two Suna teams don't seem like much of a threat. I really don't get why Tomoko-sensei ordered us to flee on sight. But that Kusa team, something about them just creeps me out." Tsubaki spoke softly, nestled against Sora.

"Tomoko-sensei issued the flee on sight order because of the record of Sabaku no Gaara. Mother didn't give me man details, but what she let slip inclines me to believe that Gaara may be a Jinchuriki. That alone is reason for you to flee on sight. As for the Kusa-nin." Sora's eyes narrowed as he focused his senses momentarily. "Something about them smells familiar, and not in a good way. I want you and the others to flee on sight if you encounter any of them. There is something non-right about them."

The two Nagareboshi genin split up and returned to their respective teams, keeping an eye on the Kusa-nin at all times.

Twenty minutes later, all of the teams had signed the consent forms and exchanged them for their scrolls. The teams stood before Anko and twenty six other proctors.

"Everypne, follow an instructor and go to your gates!! We will start in thirty minutes!!" She yelled out.

The teams instantly dispersed, the instructors headed for the furthest gates leaping away at speeds just slow enough for the genin following them to keep up with.

* * *

**Thirty Minutes Later…**

The members of Team Eight stood at Gate Twenty, waiting patiently for the exam to begin. Because they had arrived at their gate with plenty of time, Naruto and his teammates had sat down and begun discussing strategy. They had barely finished and stood back up when Anko's scary voice came out of a speaker at the top of the gate.

"The second part of the Chunin Selection Exam begins NOW!!"

At the gate, a masked Chunin proctor unlocked a chain and opened the door.

"Good luck rookies." He said as the three genin entered the forest at a run, weapons chambered and ready for action.

"Let's do this." Naruto said with a smirk.

"Hai!" "Hell yes!!"

The Chunin proctor smiled and relocked the gate as the three genin disappeared into the forest. He silently wished them luck again before disappearing in a water shunshin.

Three hours and two kilometers into the forest Hinata's Byakugan proved its worth, allowing them to steer around a colony of forest leeches. A scream that echoed through the forest moments later caused them to smirk and stop on the tree they had just landed on.

Their little trap had worked.

On the ground behind them, at the base of a tree, three Kumogakure shinobi struggled to remove the giant blue leeches which had leapt onto them as they passed through the grove.

Naruto leapt off the tree, performing a series of hand seals ending in a distinct cross-shaped seal.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Three hundred copies of Naruto descended on the downed Kumo-nin. Using them as a distraction Ino and Hinata snuck in amongst the clones, Hinata using her Byakugan to find the scroll and Ino aiding Naruto in slitting the throats of the Kumo-nin.

Less than a minute later, the members of Team 8 stood safely out of harms way as Hinata triumphantly held up a 'Heaven' scroll.

"Looks like we are free to head towards the tower." She said with a smile as she tucked the scroll away in her pack.

"Yes! This means we get more time snuggling with Naruto-kun once we get there." Ino said excitedly.

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Don't celebrate yet. We still have a ways to go, and we could encounter enemies at any point. I don't want either of you letting your guard down until we are safely inside the tower. In fact," Naruto held a hand out and six of his remaining clones leapt into the air and transformed into the strange three-pronged kunai that the girls had come to expect from Naruto. "I want each of you to carry three of these. These clones have enough chakra to last for the next twenty four hours, and I can replace them when they run out."

Hinata and Ino blinked and Naruto rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"What? Better safe than sorry. With three of these on your person I not only can ensure you have aid if an enemy manages to separate us, but also a way of pinpointing your precise location."

Naruto neglected to explain the last part, but Hinata and Ino didn't push him. They knew that when he had secrets related to techniques that he always had a good reason for keeping them to himself.

"Now come on, let's get moving. That is, if you girls want to have time to have some fun once we get there." Naruto smirked as Hinata and Ino both became serious once again.

Somewhere in the back of Naruto's mind the Kyuubi laughed.

* * *

Elsewhere in the Forest of Death, one of the two teams of Suna-nin was not doing nearly as well.

Baraki and his two teammates, Genjuu and Shiro, stood in the center of a small clearing as they tried desperately to figure out where their assailants were attacking from.

SWISH

Baraki deftly sidestepped another kunai that had been thrown at his head, using his large battle fan to send a blast of wind ripping through the trees where the kunai had come from.

In the forest around them, the three members of Team Turtle hid behind trees, Sora and Ren using a pair of Mizu bunshin to keep the Suna-nins busy while they planned out their strategy.

"Ok, so it looks like they have two wind users. I suspect from his usage of Doton techniques that the third member is an earth user." Sora said as he painted a diagram on a sheet of paper he had laid out on the ground.

"This is perfect." Arashi cheered silently, a massive grin plastered on his face. "That means they will be easy pickings for me."

Sora and Ren both shared an exasperated look.

"The first step will be to pin them down though." Sora continued, drawing a ring around the symbols representing the three Suna-nin and then beginning to scribe another series of strange symbols around the ring. "I think Ren and I should be able to pull off the technique. We've certainly practiced it enough. If we time it right you can slip in through the last gap and engage the enemy. We won't be able to back you up though, since we'll be putting our energy into maintaining the trap."

Arashi's grin darkened, taking on a bit of a feral aspect.

"Hey, I know you two think I'm just some prankster, but don't forget what I am. I can handle this. As long as you keep them from fleeing, these punks won't know what hit them."

Sora and Ren shared another look and then nodded.

On the ground in front of them Sora finished the final symbol on the paper, the symbol for completing a never ending circle.

* * *

"I've had enough of this." Baraki said grumbling as he reached into his pack and pulled out a large scroll. "I think it's time we end this."

Shiro and Genjuu both moved until they were back to back with Baraki as the older boy prepared to use his summoning scroll.

SWICK

The scroll was blasted out of Baraki's hand by a black sword longer than he was tall, pinning it against a tree on the far side of the clearing.

"I don't think so. We're only just getting started with the fun. Now why don't you sit down, lean back, and enjoy the last few minutes of your lives." Ren said with a predatory grin on his face.

SWICK

As if to emphasize his point a second sword, this time the metal carrying a blue tint, sped through the air from the opposite direction and bisected his fan before it slammed into the tree that Sora was standing on.

"Now we can begin."

As the Suna-nin drew and prepared to throw kunai at the two, Sora and Ren performed a rapid series of hand seals and then slammed them down on the tree branches they were standing on.

"Kussetsukoori: Saishuu Koori Keimushou!!" The two cried out as a pulse of chakra went out from their hands, flowing through the trees to the seals they had surrounded the clearing with.

The Suna-nin let loose with a barrage of kunai, but not a one reached its target as a massive wall of ice rose up from the ground at their feet, blocking the kunai and trapping the Suna-nin in a giant sphere of ice.

"What the hell?!" Shiro cried out.

He immediately began attempting to perform a Doton technique, but his chakra merely seemed to reflect off of the ice that had covered the ground beneath them.

"Heehee, that won't work fellas. You're my play things now. I hope you don't break too easily." Arashi's youthful voice echoed playfully through the sphere.

FWOOSH

All three Suna-nin looked up in surprise at the sudden sound to witness a blond haired boy hanging upside down from the ceiling of the sphere, seemingly "sitting" on a sphere of spinning air at the top. His golden-yellow eyes appeared to be on fire, and arcs of lightning seemed to crackle around his body. As they watched, already drawing more kunai to attack, Arashi held a silver bo-staff in front of him, lightning arcing from end to end.

"**Now you'll find out why they call me the Lightning Whirlwind of the North House.**" Arashi said coldly, his stare suddenly deadly serious and his voice dropping several octaves. "**Youso Yuugou: Enko Tsumujikaze!!"**

Arashi began to spin the sparking bo-staff in front of him as the Suna-nin launched their attacks.

The poor fools never stood a chance.

* * *

An hour later six shinobi met in a small clearing about a kilometer away from where Baraki's team had met its grisly end.

"Report on your status Team Shadow." Sora said without preamble as he lounged against a tree.

"Ketsueki Kiba and Panthera smelt a team of Iwa-nin about an hour after the exam began. We laid a trap and ambushed them when they attempted to crush Tsubaki in a dome of rock." Akane reported as she sat down, absentmindedly scratching both of her partners, who were now the size of full-grown tigers, behind their ears.

Sora nodded in understanding.

"How about you Scales?" Tsubaki asked as she stepped up next to her lover, biting him lightly on the neck. "Did you three have any fun while we were apart?"

Sora let out a deep rumble not unlike a content animal before he replied. "We encountered one of the Suna teams, the one we weren't ordered to avoid. Ren and I used that technique I told you about, the one to trap targets to either detain or destroy them, and Arashi took them out. I think Fushicho enjoyed being let off the leash for a little bit."

As if in answer to his Arashi giggled. Tsubaki figured the blond baka was probably conversing with his tenant again.

"Well then lover, I think we should get a move on towards the tower. The sooner we get there the sooner I can drag you off to some dark corner to have my way with you." Tsubaki said seductively into Sora's ear, nipping lightly at it and drawing blood for a brief moment before the wound healed itself.

The members of Team Turtle and Team Shadow all stood and rechecked their equipment, making sure everything was secure.

"All right, Team Turtle, Team Shadow, Move Ou-" Sora's voice trailed off as they felt a sudden spike of killing intent radiate through the forest.

"No…" Ren whispered quietly, her face suddenly pale and her eyes wide with fear.

"It can't be…" Arashi replied, equally as pale, albeit with eyes not nearly as wide as his teammate's.

"Scales, Panthera is smelling some sort of massive reptile, that way." Akane yelled out, pointing in the general direction of the killing intent.

Sora frowned. "We need to investigate. We have standing orders from the Ryuukage on this matter. If _he_ is here then we have no choice but to deal with him best we can and wait for reinforcements to arrive."

The members of Team Shadow all nodded while Ren and Arashi both swallowed.

"Sora…" Ren said hesitatingly. "Are you sure we can handle him, if he is really here?"

Sora's eyes narrowed.

"I'm not sure. But we have to try, to pay him back for what he did to us."

Sora reached up and absentmindedly rubbed the side of his neck. Ren looked down at her feet for a moment before looking back up.

"Alright, then let's do this. If he's here we'll pay that bastard back for what he and his master did to us." Ren's said, her voice determined and her eyes alight with a demonic fire.

As one unit, Teams Turtle and Shadow disappeared in a variety of shunshins, heading for the source of the reptilian scent.

* * *

Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru groaned as they stumbled to their feet. They hadn't even had time to see their assailant before a massive blast of wind had blown them off through the forest, slamming them into several trees.

"Bark bark!"

Kiba spun instantly when he heard his partner cry out. He instantly wished he hadn't.

Slithering before Kiba was the biggest, nastiest snake he had ever seen. It was huge, green, and staring right at him as its tongue flicked out and tasted the air.

Before Kiba could react the snake snapped its head forward, its huge fangs visible as it made to swallow Kiba whole.

SPLASH

Kiba suddenly found himself blinking and covered in blood and snake saliva as the head of the giant snake slammed into the ground around him…and bounced, flying away into the forest.

Before Kiba the body of the giant snake collapsed in bloody chunks as six shinobi were revealed. Four had massive swords which they were currently wiping the blood off of, while one held a pair of massive Fuma shuriken and the other appeared to be directing some water back into a giant flask on his back.

"Heh, looks like we arrived just in time Inu." Akane's rough voice barked out as she grinned at the stunned Kiba.

Next to her Sora frowned as he stared down at the snake. Finally he spoke, just as Kiba stumbled towards him and Akane in a daze with Akamaru trailing on his heals.

"This is definitely not good. I had suspected that the Renegade was interfering, but it's worse than we thought. It's his master Orochimaru who is present. I'd bet my life on it."

Sora's eyes darkened further as his mind was flooded with memories of the time he and his teammates had spent in captivity, at the mercies of that _madman_.

_**If he is here brat, then we have only one option.**_

Sora didn't reply, knowing that his tenant wasn't done speaking.

_**Kill him**_.

Kiba stepped back as killing intent suddenly began to roll off of Sora in visible waves.

"Team Shadow, I am initiating Emergency Protocol Theta. You are to take Ren and Arashi and get to the tower as soon as possible. Alert Fushira Tomoko and Kakkojimen Isamu to the situation. I will follow as soon as possible and meet up with Ren and Arashi outside of the Tower." Sora said authoritatively, already detaching his backpack and handing it to Akane to strap onto Panthera, the large cat grumbling at the ignominity of being used for such a menial task. "I'll escort the Konoha gaki here and attempt to aid his team. If the situation proves untenable I will buy time for the Konoha shinobi to get out of there and then break the seals in order to take that bastard down. Now go. We don't have any time to waste."

Several members of Team Shadow and Team Turtle looked like they wanted to argue with Sora on this course of action, but they bit their tongues. Sora was both the oldest and most experienced member of the sextet, and he had the Ryuukage's trust. They may not have liked what he had chosen to do, but they respected his decision.

Quietly the members of Team Shadow and Team Turtle left the clearing at top speed, heading towards the tower as quickly as they possibly could.

Sora turned to face the still shocked Kiba.

"Now, Inu, can you point me in the direction your team is?" Sora asked as he held his thumb up to his mouth and bit it with one of his prominent canines, breaking the skin.

Kiba pointed in the opposite direction from which Sora's teammates had arrived to aid him minutes before.

"Good. I hope you can hold on tight." Sora replied.

Kiba was about to ask what Sora meant when Sora dropped towards the ground, one hand outstretched and slammed it into the ground.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Diatryma!"

There were two large puffs of smoke and suddenly two massive birds appeared next to Sora and Kiba. The birds were about twelve feet tall and had powerful legs and wings that were kept close to their bodies. Their massive beaks were closed as they eyed Sora and Kiba questioningly.

"We need to reach a target fast. It's a matter of life or death."

The two birds squarked acceptance and crouch, allowing Sora to grab and toss a shocked Kiba and Akamaru onto the back of the first Diatryma before he hopped onto the second himself.

Without waiting for further orders the two Diatryma were off like lightning into the forest, heading in the direction Sora indicated, and towards where he could now sense a great amount of chakra.

* * *

Sora and Kiva arrived just in time to see Sasuke and Sakura dodge another huge snake as it attempted to bite them off of the tree. On top of the snake's head Sora saw a figure that made his blood run cold and caused his rage and hatred to build.

"Kiba, I'm going to provide a distraction, I want you to get your teammates and get them out of here on my friends here." Sora said as he reached one hand over his shoulder to grab hold of his massive sword.

Kiba gave no complaint, preparing to leap himself so that he could rescue his teammates once the distraction was given.

Faster than Kiba would have thought possible, Sora leapt off the back of his mount, flying towards the giant snake as he closed his hand tightly around the grip of his blade. Mere moments after he had entered the air there were sudden gouts of flame from his feet, accelerating him upwards towards the snake.

"OROCHIMARU!!!" Sora cried out as he swung his sword, slamming it into the giant snake.

Orochimaru's summoned snake exploded in a storm of blood and guts as a the whirlwind of death that was Kabatsu Sora sped through it, his real target dodging his attack with meters to spare and coming to rest on a nearby tree branch.

Sora kicked off a chunk of the snake and landed on the opposite end of the branch.

"You bastard." Sora growled as he crouched, his sword held with both hands in a cross-wise guard. "For what you did to me and my friends, I will destroy you."

Without waiting for a reply or to see if Kiba was getting his teammates away Sora leapt at Orochimaru, who despite looking like whoever it was he had impersonated to enter the exam still radiated an aura that could be no one else.

Orochimaru dodged the strike easily, his parry with a kunai deceptively strong and knocking Sora off towards another tree.

_Damn. And I thought I would have more time to test the Uchiha's abilities. No matter, I can leave him a present and then deal with this whelp._

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and summoned another snake, dispatching it to keep Sora occupied as Orochimaru dove towards the base of a tree, where Kiba and Sakura were desperately trying to convince Sasuke to come with them, none of the three seeing his approach.

Orochimaru smirked and performed a few hand seals. Suddenly his neck extended and he dove his head towards the struggling Uchiha. Sasuke barely had time for his eyes to widen before Orochimaru's head bit into his neck. Orochimaru smirked as he pulled back, watching as Sasuke collapsed in pain and a black trinity of tomoe in a spiral appeared on his neck where Orochimaru had bit him.

"What did you do to Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura cried out as Sasuke collapsed in pain.

Orochimaru chuckled as he disappeared into the ground. "I gave him a going away present. If he survives he will seek me out for power."

Moments after Orochimaru disappeared into the ground Sakura and Kiba had to crouch to protect themselves and Sasuke from the explosion og earth that occurred when Sora slammed his sword into the ground where Orochimaru had been standing, rending it apart.

"GET BACK HERE YOU BASTARD!!!" He screamed with fire raging around him as killing intent rolled off of him in waves.

Before Kiba or Sakura could say anything Sora had pulled his sword out of the ground and with a wave of his hand dismissed the two summoned Diatryma before he sped off into the forest, following the hint of Orochimaru's essence he could track.

Kiba sighed and hefted Sasuke up over his shoulder.

"Come on Sakura. We should find some cover before it gets dark."

Sakura nodded silently and followed her teammate, worried about her Sasuke-kun and whatever that strange Kusa-nin had done to him.

* * *

**Twelve Hours Later…**

A bloody, exhausted Kabatsu Sora came out of the woods surrounding the central Tower on the back of a large diatryma, one arm hanging limply at his side. He was instantly surrounded by Ren and Arashi, who had been waiting high up in the trees for their teammate to arrive.

"Sora, what happened?" Ren asked as she landed beside him, helping him down off of his mount as Arashi took his sword from him.

Sora grunted before replying. "It was Orochimaru. The bastard ran away after I confronted him, but that Konoha kunoichi Tsubaki and I were interested in showed up and stalled him long enough for me to catch up. The bastard got a few lucky hits in on me before he got away again."

Sora cringed as Ren popped his right arm back into its socket.

"Thanks Ren." Sora said quietly as the three of them headed for the tower to complete the exam and get Sora some medical attention.

As they got closer Sora spotted some flashes of yellow and the team paused, watching as Naruto and his teammates entered through one of the doors on the tower.

"Well, well, well." Sora said with a pained chuckle. "Looks like he made it through after all."

Sora's mind began to race with daydreams of having a match with the blond Konoha shinobi as his two teammates helped him get to tower. When they reached it the trio wasted no time in entering one of doors.

They found themselves in an empty room with a big scroll unrolled on the wall.

Sora sat down, exhausted, while his two teammates considered it for a moment. Finally Ren pulled out their 'Heaven' and 'Earth' scrolls.

"Hey guys, I think we are supposed to open these scrolls now." She said as she handed one of the scrolls to Arashi, looking towards Sora for confirmation.

Sora nodded as he rubbed at his neck, loosening muscles tense from hours of combat and stress. Arashi and Ren broke the seals on the scrolls and unrolled them.

"Crap, it's some sort of summoning jutsu." Ren cried out as she and Arashi dropped the scrolls to the floor and stepped back.

There was a puff of smoke and a Chunin with long spiky hair and a bandage across his face and over his nose appeared.

"Congratulations, you've completed the second exam. Anko-san had wanted the privilege of greeting you personally, but she is incapacitated at the moment." The figure said.

At this statement Ren noticed that Sora's hand returned to his neck again.

"If you would care to follow me, we'll get you settled into rooms and get your some medical attention." The Chunin said as he turned and headed toward a door that had appeared in the corner of the room and motioned with one hand for them to follow.

Sora stood up with a grunt and followed his teammates through the door.

* * *

Over the next four days teams continued to trickle in. Sora had quickly discovered that the second Suna team had arrived in record time, having made it to the tower before Sora had even discovered that Orochimaru was in the forest. His fellow Nagareboshi-nin from Team Shadow had made it obviously, as had the silver-haired genin he had seen speaking with Naruto before the first exam.

Most of the Konoha rookies had made it, but Sora was disappointed to find that the sword using trio had apparently dropped out. For their sakes he hoped that none of them had been killed. Rounding off the finishers were the Otogakure shinobi that Team 8 had shut down before the first exam and the trio of Konoha shinobi with the dude with the fuzzy eyebrows. Those things still made Sora cringe.

During those four days Sora had reported to his sensei on the encounter with Orochimaru as well as resting from the whole experience. Even with all his skill and power, the Nagareboshi genin had to admit that Orochimaru was levels above him still.

In the end a total of nine teams had completed the exam, with Kabuto's and Team 7 being the last to arrive, just barely making it under the five day time limit. They were now all gathered in a large room with balconies along two walls, a large statue of hands performing a hand seal, and several large wooden panels inset into the wall behind it.

The Hokage stood on a slightly raised section in front of the statue, flanked to the fore by ten of the exam proctors, and backed by the Jounin instructors of the nine surviving teams.

"First off, for the second test, congratulations on passing!!" The Hokage began loudly.

There were varied mumblings around the room as the various genin briefly celebrated to them selves having passed the first test or focused their attention on various opponents who had caught their attention.

"Hokage-sama will now explain the third test." Anko yelled out, interrupting their reverie. "So listen carefully."

Anko turned to face the Hokage. "Now Hokage-sama, if you would please begin." She said much more sedately.

"Before I explain the third test, there is something I'd like you to know." The Hokage began seriously.

He swiftly launched into his whole spiel about the true purpose of the exam and it being a replacement for war between the hidden villages. When he was finally about to explain the third exam there was a puff of smoke and a figure appeared kneeling before the Hokage.

"Excuse me. I apologize, Hokage-sama, but from here on, as the referee, will you please allow me, Shiranui Genma, to explain the third exam?"

The hokage nodded. "By all means."

The figure stood and turned to face the gathered genin. He had brown hair covered by a purple head wrap and wore a Jounin vest.

"Hello everyone, I'm Hayate. Before the third test, there is something I'd like you to do." Genma said around the senbon needle sticking out of his mouth. "It's a preliminary for the third test, to decide who gets to participate in the main event."

Sora heard the annoying pink-haired kunoichi Sakura question softly 'Preliminary?'

"Preliminary?! What the hell do you mean?!" Shikamaru cried out, annoyance plain on his face.

"Because the first and second test may have been too easy this year we have a few too many people remaining." Genma replied calmly. "By the rules of the Chunin exam, we need to have a preliminary to reduce the number of participants for the third test. As Hokage-sama indicated earlier, there will be many guests at the third test, and we are limited on time. Because the fights could take too long there is a limit on the number of finalists we can have."

Genma paused for a moment to let this sink in.

"So anyway, if anyone is not feeling well, or rather, those who feel like quiting after these explanations, please come forward now since we will be starting the preliminary matches immediately."

Sora was again thankful he was on the other side of the crowd from the Konoha rookies as Kiba let out a yell. "What?!! Right now?!!"

Suddenly Sora caught one of the Konoha shinobi, the silver-haired one named Kabuto, staring pointedly towards his Jounin sensei for a moment before he smiled and raised his hand. As Kabuto announced he was going to quit Sora noted the slight smirk on Kabuto's sensei's face, something that seemed quite out of place. Silently he made a mental note to report this oddity to his sensei when he got the chance.

There were several surprised cries from the Konoha rookies as Kabuto bowed out of the exam. Once he had been escorted from the room by a Chunin proctor and Genma confirmed that there was no one else who wished to give up he continued.

"Now let us begin the preliminary. The preliminary will consist of one on one fights between two of you. You will fight as if in a real life confrontation." Genma paused for this to sink in. "Now, since we have exactly twenty six remaining entrants, we will conduct thirteen matches and the winners will advance to the third test."

All around the room people looked towards Genma in rapt attention.

"There are basically no rules. The fight continues until one of you dies, is knocked out, or admits your defeat. If you don't want to die, well, then you should quickly acknowledge your defeat. But, when I decide that the winner has clearly been established, since we don't want to pointlessly increase the amount of corpses, I will jump in and stop things."

Genma paused again for a moment, sending a look to Anko before continuing.

"And the object that controls your destiny…"

Behind Genma one of the wooded panels began to rise, revealing a large computer screen that was hidden behind it.

"Is this electric socre-board. It will show the match-ups for each battle. Now, this is sudden, but let's announce the two names of the first fight.

Everyone in the room held their breath as they waited for the board to display the first match. After several long moments the board flashed up a pair of names.

Uchiha Sasuke

VS

Shinomori Tsubaki

* * *

AN: And….evil me I end it there. But, this was precisely the point I planned this chapter to end.

This chapter was simultaneously fun and difficult to write. Fun, because I finally got to showcase a little bit of my character's combat skills, and difficult because I cut out probabaly a third or more of what I originally had planned. However, when I actually sat down and thoguht about it, I decided that most of tyhe stuff involving Team 7 both before and after Sora showed up to fight Orochimaru really wasn't different enough from canon, or interesting enough, to warrant actually writing. In fact, I'm fairly certain you, my loyal readers, would have been just as bored reading those sections as I would have been writing them.

The creatures that Sora summons are real. Diatryma was a genus, technically named _Gastornis_ but generally classified interchangably as Diatryma, of large flightless believe to be carnivorous birds from the late Paleocene and Eocene periods of the Cenozoic era. They are also the inspiration for the chocobos of Final Fantasy, and the avian-horse mounts in the manga _Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind_.

This chapter marks, quite obviously, the beginning of the preliminaries and the beginning of what will amount to a showcase of talents. I hope you are all ready for a wild ride, because Kussetsukoori: Saishuu Koori Keimushou and Youso Yuugou: Enko Tsumujikaze are just the tip of the ice berg of what these guys can do in battle. Prepare to watch as shinobi reveal their true strengths, fight against destiny, and show everyone just what they are made of. Please remember to Read and Review, and if you haven't already check out my other Naruto fics "Konoha's Golden Viper" and "Legacy of the Planet."

Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 21: The Real Challenge Begins.

**Techniques **– Because they are just so much fun to develop and explain.

**Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Diatryma**--_Summoning Technique: Diatryma/_ The summoning technique for the Diatryma clan, large carnivorous flight-less birds who are contracted with Kabatsu Sora. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)

**Kussetsukoori: Saishuu Koori Keimushou**--_Bending Ice: Final Ice Prison/_ A massive sphere of unbreakable ice is formed, rising from the ground to surround a target. This high level technique requires large amounts of control and chakra, along with the capacity to use Kussetsukoori techniques, special seals created for the specific situation, and a minimum of two channelers. The channelers are incapacitated while they maintain the technique, which is nigh impossible to escape or break through. This technique also requires set up, but is very useful for trapping targets for assassinations, as while the channelers will ideally be right next to where they are forming the sphere of ice, but they can be a short distance away as long as they are channeling enough chakra and all the seals are perfectly placed. Due to the extremely high chakra and control requirements, this technique is considered an S-Class Ninjutsu. Only five people in living memory have been able to master and successfully use this technique. (S-Class Ninjutsu)

**Youso Yuugou: Enko Tsumujikaze**--_Element Fusion: Arc Whirlwind/_ This technique is a combination of two elements and was developed by Arashi Gouzenkaze shortly before his Genin examination. The ten year old prodigy had developed a manner of releasing the lightning energy into his specialized bo-staff and then creating a whirlwind by spinning it. The highly-charged air of the whirlwind quickly becomes a death trap for anyone caught in it as lightning bolts shoot through the whirlwind seeking targets. (A-Class Ninjutsu) (Gouzenkaze Arashi)

**Review Responses** - More fun than shooting cylons in a barrel.

gunnslie - Thanks man.

landoffire - Well thank you. I was hoping Sora's little prank would get some laughs.

Moonfal - You, know that is the sign that one's art has hit a new peak. When a reader laughs so much that he shows his roommate. As to my original story, I'll be sure to let you know when I put it up. I'm going to finish it before I put it up anywhere though. I want to have it completely done first.

As always, thank you so much for reviewing.

Knives91 - And here is the next chapter. Hopefully you find it just as impressive as the last.

rain alchemist - Thank you. I am now wondering what you thought of the Anko interaction in this chapter. As to Naruto cursing out the Hokage and Anko, well, there is still plenty of time, and none of you knopw quite what my deranged mind has planned for this story. hehe.

Jaa ne, Mel.

-ZI

Kontraband - Finally someone got it. ^_^ hehe, I've been waiting for someone to get that. As to the weapon and its wielder, I am sorry but you missed it by about three meters. There were several weapons there, but only one was an actual cameo. I do not count something that actually matters to the overall story as a simple cameo, and while I don't want to spoil too much, Zangetsu does factor in to later parts of the story.

Chrisdz - Thank you.

the-wandering-scribe - Thank you. And nope, you didn't miss anything with the lizards. I have very specifically NOT told you all precisely what they are, where they are from, or what is going on with them. Although I am sure that by now some of my readers have begun to put clues together and devise their own theories as to what the heck is going on. I wonder, if I put a challenge out at the end of the next chapter, if I can get people to review with their theories of what's going on. ^_^

Okiro Zangetsu - Nani?


	21. Chapter 21: The Real Challenge Begins

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 21: The Real Challenge Begins

Uchiha Sasuke

VS

Shinomori Tsubaki

Everyone around the room blinked, making sure that they were reading the screen right. While the first match up settled into everyone's minds the two chosen contestants were sharing a very long and very fierce glare.

Despite his problems, Uchiha Sasuke was no idiot. He had seen the way that black-haired Nagareboshi girl had been behaving around Sora. He knew that by beating her he would practically guarantee himself a fight with the mysterious Nagareboshi genin. At that moment Uchiha Sasuke vowed that he would defeat Tsubaki, whatever it took.

"Ok, if you will all please move to the observation balconies we will begin this match." Genma said, his senbon needle wobbling up and down as he spoke.

Everyone except Sasuke, Tsubaki, and the referee Genma moved towards the balconies. As he walked past Sasuke Kakashi paused and gave him a warning to not use the Sharingan, or the cursed seal would activate. Tsubaki was too busy speaking with her sensei as well to notice the fierce glare Sasuke sent towards her.

Naruto was surprised to note that the members of the two Nagareboshi teams had both moved to the opposite balcony from the Konoha teams. They were apparently the only genin not freaked out by Gaara, that strange Suna nin. In fact, Naruto would almost say that Sora and Ren, the two who actually risked standing next to the creepy genin, seemed almost at ease with his presence. It was giving him a headache just thinking about it.

As Naruto finished climbing the steps and leant against the railing in between the two most important girls in his life he noticed that the blue-haired kunoichi who was apparently the Jounin for Tsubaki's team whispered something to the girl before turning and walking up the stairs to join the rest of her team. He noticed that Tsubaki was clenching and unclenching her fists and seemed to almost be visibly shaking with annoyance.

Little did Naruto know that Shinomori Tsubaki had just been ordered to not reveal the abilities that would have guaranteed her victory in the match. Thus Tsubaki was not feeling very generous, and intended to do her best to cause as much pain as possible to the Uchiha.

When the floor had finally been cleared of the gathered proctors, instructors, and participants, Tsubaki and Sasuke took their places opposite one another on the floor. Genma stood on the raised platform in front of the statue while Sasuke and Tsubaki squared off. The last loyal Uchiha moved into a stance with both hands held out in front of him, kunai gripped tightly. He narrowed his eyes and glared at his opponent.

_She will fall before me._ He thought in the darkness that was his mind.

Across from him Tsubaki stood in a much more relaxed pose. Despite her obvious annoyance with something she had stood in a meditative state, both her hands held palms together in front of her, and her eyes closed as she breathed deeply. Around her forearms a pair of seals pulsed, almost begging to be used, but she resisted the temptation. She would fight this battle entirely based on the element of shadow alone.

After Genma reiterated the rules, which both combatants paid only minor attention to, the Chunin stepped back and brought his hands together in a single seal.

"Begin." His voice said as he disappeared in a swirl of leaves, reappearing closer to the statue and out of harms way.

Genma had hardly finished speaking when a pair of kunai flew across the room at lightning speed, spot on for Tsubaki's face. Sasuke smirked as the girl remained absolutely motionless as the blades reached for her, ready to draw her blood.

His smirk was immediately replaced with a look of shock as the two kunai flew through the girl's head and embedded them selves in the wall behind her. Tsubaki's form had dissolved into flowing shadow around the blade, dropping to the floor in a puddle. Belatedly Sasuke leapt into the air and landed on the wall behind him, sticking to it with chakra. A massive spike of black shadows had risen right where he had been standing mere moments before. As he watched the shadow resolved itself into the figure of Tsubaki, her eyes still closed.

In the balcony above Shikamaru's eyes had widened as he witnessed Tsubaki perform Kagesekijun and Kage ni Ugoki, two legendary shadow techniques. While records claimed that one of the founders of the Nara Clan had been capable of such feats, the ability had not been seen in generations.

"Damn. I almost had you there. I guess the vaunted Uchiha reputation exists for a reason after all." Tsubaki said calmly, not really speaking to anyone in particular.

Tsubaki cocked her head to the right and smiled, allowing a thrown shuriken from a now quite angry Sasuke to fly past harmlessly.

"Is that all you have, Uchiha? Or are you going to actually get serious and give me some fun?" Tsubaki taunted the Uchiha heir.

In the balconies above both Sora and Naruto were silently cheering the girl on. Hinata and Ino on the other hand were praying that Sasuke would receive a certain…'disfiguring' injury. Tsubaki's shadow spike had come damn close to doing just that.

Sasuke moved faster than either of his teammates had thought he could, performing a series of hand seals and breathing in deeply.

"Goukakyu no Jutsu!!"

Sasuke spat out a massive fireball towards Tsubaki, but the black-haired girl easily dodged it. It didn't even singe her purple and black shinobi uniform. It did however buy Sasuke time to go on the offensive. Tsubaki landed after her roll only to find Sasuke's foot swinging up into her chest. She barely managed to bring her arms into a cross position before the blow connected, throwing her back across the room.

Sasuke wisely didn't let up. Before Tsubaki hit the ground he was already racing towards her, firing off a second Goukakyu no Jutsu. Tsubaki rolled into a standing position as she hit the ground. Having heard Sasuke's attack called out again she channeled as much chakra as she could into her arms and crossed them in front of her face, both encased in shadow.

When the flame cleared Sasuke smirked, pleased at the success of his attack. Tsubaki stood scorched, her arms still crossed and breathing heavily. Finally she lowered her arms, revealing her glare, fierce as any cornered or angry animal, and her hair, the ends of which were still smoldering.

"YOU LITTLE BASTARD!!! I'LL KILL YOU!!!" Tsubaki screamed, her eyes seemingly practically alight with rage.

Sasuke smirked again and prepared to attack when suddenly Tsubaki wasn't there any more. Sasuke flew backwards into the wall as Tsubaki's kick connected with his solar plexus. He hit the wall so hard it left a faint impression as he fell, dropping to his knees and coughing up some blood.

_How-how the hell did she move that fast? Her speed was faster than Rock Lee's!_ Sasuke's eyes were wide in shock and surprise as the absolutely furious Tsubaki stalked towards him.

"I'LL RIP YOUR HEAD OFF YOU LITTLE SHIT!! NOW GET UP AND TAKE YOUR BEATING LIKE A REAL MAN!!!"

Sasuke struggled to stand under the effect of Tsubaki's killing intent. It was no where near as strong as that snake freak in the forest had possessed, but it was still enough that he was shivering in fear.

Tsubaki reached her hands around to her back and took hold of the rings of her oversized curve shuriken drawing them both fluidly and opening them with a snap. In the balconies above several Konoha Jounin were preparing to step in. This girl clearly intended to meet out her threats on Sasuke. Some of the Jounin were merely being conscientious guardians for the genin. Hatake Kakashi was worried what the council would think if the last Uchiha lost. He would step in even if Sasuke's life was in danger and claim it was.

"I won't be defeated." Sasuke spat out, spitting up a little more blood.

_Damn, she really got me good with that kick. I can't afford to take another blow like that. I need to end this fast. I know Kakashi warned me not to use that seal. It extracts my chakra and tries to take over my mind. But if I can finish this quickly it won't matter._

His mind made up, Uchiha Sasuke reached for his Sharingan, his eyes turning red and two black tomoe spinning in his eyes.

"YOUR PATHETIC KEKKEI GENKAI WON'T SAVE YOU NOW BASTARD!! YOU RUINED MY HAIR!!! AND I HAVE A DATE AFTER THIS!!!" Tsubaki screamed.

She got within four feet of Sasuke and then suddenly seemed to shift, crossing the distance in an instant and grabbing the Uchiha heir by the throat and slamming him against the wall. Sasuke's wince of pain as the seal on his neck activated went unnoticed by everyone as it was concealed by his pain from being thrust into the wall.

"Then my condolences, but you won't be making that date." Sasuke said darkly.

Tsubaki noticed the red markings that seemed to be growing along Sasuke's body away outward from his neck too late to end things. Before she could react Sasuke brought one hand up and grabbed the arm that was holding him against the wall, squeezing. Tsubaki cried out in pain as a resounding crack echoed around the room as Sasuke broke her arm, freeing himself. Around the room people either winced in pain, cheered Sasuke on (a certain pink-haired kunoichi), or narrowed their eyes. Sora had heard the crack, but the cry of pain told him even without being able to see that Tsubaki was in pain,

The Uchiha heir wasn't finished there. Before anyone could react he crouched and kicked Tsubaki in the chest again, sending her flying into the air. Leaping after her Sasuke provided a one-two punch to her lower back and then spun delivering one final kick that sent her plummeting to the ground where she lay still.

Genma had barely finished declaring the Uchiha the winner when Sora appeared at Tsubaki's side in a burst of flame. In the balcony above Shikamaru looked very disappointed that the shadow user had lost, and maybe even slightly jealous that she was apparently already involved with someone.

As the medic nins arrived with a stretcher to carry of Tsubaki, whose side Sora almost refused to leave, Kakashi lead Sasuke away into the tower. The Uchiha may have refused to withdraw due to the seal, but Kakashi could now take the time to properly apply a seal to keep it under control. Their exit went unnoticed by all but the Jounin instructor of the Oto nin.

Sora on the other hand wanted to go with Tsubaki to keep an eye on her, but the shadow wielder, who had managed to regain consciousness, practically ordered her boyfriend to remain.

"Stay Sora. Win your fight and then come be by my side. But I won't have you missing your chance because of pity for me. You're stronger than that. I'M stronger than that." Tsubaki spoke softly but firmly.

She reached up with her one good arm and stroked Sora's cheek. Sora covered her hand with his own and kissed her palm before standing.

"I'll win my fight, love, then I will rejoin you. Stay well until my return."

Sora vanished in a flash of flame, reappearing on the balcony above. Tsubaki giggled at her boyfriend's antics before wincing in pain again. On the balconies above the other genin all stood quietly, nervous and anxious for the next fight. When Tsubaki had finally been carried out by the medic-nins Genma coughed to get their attention and then motioned towards the board above his head.

The screen again began to glow and everyone held their breath as they awaited the announcement of the second match. Finally, two names flashed across the board.

Ameshira Nobu

Vs

Yamanaka Ino

Ino blinked and then looked across the room to try to figure out which one was her opponent. When she saw the short Nagareboshi boy with the cobalt-blue hair and the odd metal flask on his back begin to walk towards the stairs she got her answer.

"Don't worry love, you'll do great." Naruto said, hugging Ino from behind and kissing her on the cheek. "And after we get through this, the three of us will take a nice long shower to get clean and then spend the entire day tomorrow in bed. How does that sound?"

Ino giggled and blushed slightly at her boyfriend's suggestion. He had certainly gotten more forward in their sexual activities, but she blamed that on Hinata's and her own sex drives. Naruto was just responding to what he knew they wanted.

"Thanks Naruto." Ino said with a smile as she turned to walk towards the ground below. As she began to head down the steps she noticed that Nobu had a harsh look on his face and that the two otters she had last seen him with had disappeared.

_No, wait, there they are. I wonder why he left them up on the balcony. Is he honestly that confident in his abilities that he won't use every advantage he has?_ Ino wondered as she reached the base of the stairs and walked to stand opposite of the blue-haired boy.

"Fuh. I'm fighting one of that bastard's fangirls." Nobu growled out harshly.

Ino was taken aback by the absolute hate ridden glare the boy was sending her.

"I swear. For what that bastard did to Tsubaki, I am going to cause you a world of hurt Konoha-teme." Nobu growled through clenched teeth as he went into a crouch.

Ino blinked in honest surprise before Nobu's words sank in. Angrily she shouted back at the foreign shinobi.

"Hey, that bastard's no friend of mine either! The last time he even dared get near me Hinata and I put him in the hospital with crushed testicles!"

Nobu's reaction was no what anyone expected. The blue-haired boy paused. He blinked. And then he visibly relaxed and began to smile. Needless to say Ino Yamanaka was confused.

"Oh, well that changes things then. I can relax and enjoy a friendly match rather than trying to punish you. I guess not all of you Konoha shinobi are bastards after all."

Genma coughed to regain their attention.

"Now, you know the rules. Begin." Genma moved to safety as soon as he had finished speaking.

Everyone in the balconies watched as Ino and the blue-haired genin began to circle one another warily. Neither had any idea what to expect from the other, so they were noticeably being careful. Finally Ino got an idea. Moving quickly she brought her hands together and performed a set of hand seals. She remained silent however, causing the gathered viewers to wonder what she was up to. Nobu on the other hand had recognized the series of hand seals and possessed a small smirk.

A moment after Ino finished the jutsu the chamber suddenly became obscured by a thick fog. In the balcony the members of those teams who had not yet encountered the jutsu squeaked in surprise as the cold mist enveloped them. Within the darkness of the mist Ino smirked and performed a second jutsu, again doing so silently.

Around the blond a ring of water condensed and floated for a few seconds before expanding outward at a rapid pace into the mists. A second later she heard an out of place splash as the water connected with her opponent.

_Gotcha._

Acting within the mist faster than anyone could expect Ino performed a large Suiton: Teppoudama and let it fly. She cursed silently though and dodged to the side as the splash had all the characteristics of it hitting a flat wall.

Nobu's chuckling voice was suddenly heard echoing through out the room.

"Just my luck, a fellow Suiton user." His voice said. Ino looked around anxiously trying to pinpoint the source. "I'm sorry, but I think I'm going to end this farce quickly. Please try not to think too badly of me."

Ino was still trying to figure out where he was coming from when the mist around her suddenly flowed away from her, condensing into flowing streams of water that moved and swam through the air. Ino would almost have thought they were pretty, if they hadn't then proceeded to slam towards her. The blond girl barely managed to dodge the first two, but the third caught her firmly in the chest and slammed her hard against the wall.

On the balconies above the 'watchers' heard Ino's gasp as the air was forced from her lungs by the impact. Below, Ino was held tightly against the wall by a set of constant flowing streams of water pressure. Nobu's chuckle drew her gaze upward, and Ino watched as the blue-haired shinobi walked out of the mist. She noticed that the flask on his back appeared to have been opened, and several rings of water were flowing around him in a costant steady pace. She saw that his hands were not in a hand seal like she expected, but rather moving and swirling around one another in an odd sort of dance.

"I am sorry, but I need a chance to avenge my teammate, and the only way to do that is to reach the finals. I hope you can understand." He said calmly as he approached. "Either you can surrender now, or I can put you into unconsciousness. As the unconsciousness route will involve drowning you, it is highly advised that you just announce your surrender. It will cause you less pain and me less guilt."

Genma stood nearby in the mists. It was clear to him that Ino had lost, so if Nobu actually moved to drown her he would step in and declare Nobu the winner. But not before. Otherwise he him self would be in violation of the rules.

Nobu paused just outside of Ino's reach and stared into the eyes of the struggling kunoichi. After several long moments he replied.

"You won't give up, even when your defeat is imminent. That's commendable. For that I'll knock you out quickly." Nobu said as he drew a pair of metal balls from his pocket and tossed them into the air. "Kussetsumizu: Kuroi."

As Nobu spoke softly he performed a single hand seal, and two of the swirls of water around him swept up and grabbed the metal balls. They were thrust forward and slammed against Ino's temples. The blond dropped immediately into blissful unconsciousness.

Genma stepped forward and confirmed this state for a moment.

"The winner is Ameshira Nobu via a knock out."

On the balconies above Naruto and Hinata gasped, letting out breaths they hadn't even been aware they had been holding. They knew that the Nagareboshi genin were good, but they hadn't even been able to see the match thanks to all the mists Ino had summoned. A few moments later the mists in the room vanished in a rush of wind as Ameshira Nobu opened his flask again, the seals of the flask activating with a bit of chakra and doing what they were designed to do, drawing in and trapping the water in the air.

The blue-haired shinobi surprised both Hinata and Naruto by staying by Ino's side until the medic-nins arrived to take her away. Hinata and Naruto both wanted to rush to Ino's side, to remain with her until she regained consciousness, but they both knew that Ino would never forgive her self if they missed their matches because of her. They both silently prayed as the blond kunoichi was removed from the room and Ameshira Nobu walked sedately back to the top of the opposing balcony.

Nobu was suffering through some very loud congratulations from his teammate Akane and the blond genin from Sora's team when a beeping sound alerted everyone to the board above displaying the next match. Naruto looked up and had to snort. The two combatants were not going to like this. Nope, not one bit.

* * *

Inuzuka Kiba watched with barely controlled excitement as Ino was removed from the room on a stretcher. Even though he hadn't really been able to witness the second match, it appeared that that Nobu boy had pulled out some spectacular tricks to beat Ino. Kiba had to admit that Ino was as strong as she was good looking, at least compared to her fellow kunoichi, but these Nagareboshi genin were on a whole new level.

Even though he had won, it had been clear that Uchiha Sasuke had suffered an immense amount of damage from Tsubaki's attack. Just a single attack at that. And those cool shadow abilities she had used at first, those were so far beyond anything he had witnessed Shikamaru perform. Not that he had managed to get the lazy boy to show him much of anything. In fact, the only ability he had gotten Shikamaru to show him was because Shikamaru had used the Kagemane no Jutsu on him to get him to shut up and watch the clouds.

He returned his attention to Nobu as the boy reached his friends, receiving exuberant congratulations from the blond kid and a kiss on the cheek from Akane. For some reason Kiba couldn't place he almost felt jealous of the boy when that happened. Almost. As much as an Inuzuka could be jealous of someone being kissed by that-that damn cat woman.

A sudden beeping sound alerted Kiba to the third match being declared, so he lazily allowed his gaze to drift up to the board. When he saw what was displayed he blinked. And blinked again. Then rubbed his eyes and looked again. Finally he just stood there in shock with his jaw dropped for several long moments.

"WHAT THE HELL!?!?!" Two voices rang out from opposite sides of the room as what they were seeing finally sank in.

Displayed on the board were the last two names anyone expected to be used together in the same sentence.

Inuzuka Kiba

VS

Nekozuka Akane

On the Konoha side of the room a brown spiky-haired boy let out an exasperated mutter of "Troublesome" as Kiba continued to sputter for several seconds before giving it up as a lost cause and leaping over the railing to reach the floor as quickly as possible. Akamaru leapt from atop his head as soon as they landed and barked loudly as the cat user walked slowly down the steps from her balcony.

As she did so Kiba had to admit that she was attractive. Hell, if it hadn't been for the damn cat scent about her he'd likely have tried to maneuver her into the sack.

At this point it should be mentioned that Kiba was still confused by Akane's actions back during the first exam. He still had no idea if the cat user was just messing with him, or if she actually had an interest in him.

"Well Inu, you ready to get your ass handed to you?" Akane asked haughtily as she stretched. Her two partners, both slightly larger than Akamaru, stood to either side of her and seemed to be stretching out themselves.

"Yeah right! You and those damn cats of yours are going down bitch, hard!" Kiba called back, growling and crouching, waiting for Genma to start the match.

Akane chuckled and reached up over her shoulder and grabbed a hold of the blade, her hand forming a single seal and holding it before her. As Genma reiterated the rules, just for safety's sake, Kiba narrowed his eyes and wondered just what was up with that big ass sword. It was so large it would certainly be a hindrance to her if she used it to fight him.

"Now that you have been reminded of the rules, begin!"

As soon as Genma had spoken Akane narrowed her eyes and focused her chakra through the one handed seal.

"Kai!" She called out, tightening her grip on the handle of her sword and drawing it from her back in one fluid motion, the red wrapping flaring out in a spiral around her, combining with the sudden puffs of smoke emanating from her two feline partners to obscure her for a few moments.

When the smoke cleared a few moments later Kiba gulped and swallowed. Standing before him were two very large and very fierce looking jungle cats. Ketsueki Kiba now stood to Akane's left, several times larger than a full grown adult, growling and crouched low, his mottled coat glistening. To her right stood Panthera, who was even larger than Ketsueki Kiba. Her pure black coat seemed to absorb all light that fell upon it, causing her to almost appear to be made up of shadow.

And Akane herself stood in crouch, but her massive sword was nowhere to be found. Instead, she had a pair of blood-red nekode claws on her hands, the metal seeming to almost flow red in the light illuminating the chamber.

"Let's do this." She said calmly.

Suddenly her two partners leapt forward, racing towards Kiba in a pincer maneuver. Kiba reacted quickly despite his fear and tossed a special food pill to Akamaru before swallowing one himself. Akamaru's fur turned red and the two dodged the attack of the two large jungle cats, Akamaru landing on Kiba's back as the latter crouched.

"Juujin Bunshin!" Kiba cried out.

The still stationary Akane watched as a massive burst of smoke surrounded Kiba and Akamaru, revealing as it dissipated a pair of feral looking Kiba's. Akane smirked and her two partners stopped moving, remaining crouched and ready to attack on her command.

"Ah, the infamous Juujin Bunshin. Now I can enjoy myself. Panthera, Ketsueki, you can tell which one is the runt. Keep him occupied while I enjoy a match with his master."

Akane brought her clawed hands together and closed her eyes focusing for a moment as her two partners drove one of the clones away towards the far side of the room, keeping him occupied in a feral taijutsu assault. As the observers watched, the claws began to glow with a reddish light that seemed to be tinted with bursts of black shadow. After a few moments Akane opened her eyes and her hands closed together in a single seal.

"Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Ketsueki Tsume!!" She cried out, her voice cracking as chakra pulsed down her arms and into the glowing claws.

Still roaring, Akane leapt forward towards Kiba and slashed downward with her claws. Kiba barely managed to dodge aside as a massive set of red chakra blades extended from Akane's claws and slashed through the ground where he had stood. Kiba tried to rush Akane from the flank but the kunoichi merely roared again and flipped to the side, lashing out again with her claws.

This time Kiba got caught by the strike and was tossed across the room, rolling to avoid the brunt of the attack. Growling he got to his feet.

"That's it! You're dead bitch!!"

Kiba crouched and began to focus his chakra.

"To me Akamaru!"

Akane blinked in surprise as Akamaru managed to leap away from Panthera and Ketsueki Kiba and land by Kiba's side.

"Gatsuuga!!!" The inu-genin cried out both him and Akamaru leaping forward and spinning, turning into two massive drills headed straight for Akane.

The Nagareboshi kunoichi smirked as the spinning attacks sped towards her.

"Time to kick it up a notch. KURAIKAGE NO ARU YORU: KAMIKAZE HAJIME NO GAKUSHOU!!"

In the balcony above Naruto noticed the eyes of the opposing Nagareboshi genin all widen, just before they all ducked down away from the railing. Naruto barely had time to utter an "oh shit" and pull Hinata back from the edge when the chakra Akane had just channeled was released.

Akane suddenly began spinning like a vortex, her claws held out to each side. As her spin increased in speed the first Gatsuuga hit, but the winds swirling around her merely deflected Kiba and Akamaru away harmlessly. The two landed and redirected their attack straight back at the spinning genin, intent on breaking through the field of wind. On the balcony above a single word was on the lips of several people, those who knew of the Hyuuga Clan's so-called 'ultimate defense'.

"Kaiten."

Within the dome of swirling wind Akane smirked, her eyes glowing a deep feral red.

_Please, share more of your power with me. This isn't enough._ Akane begged of the being that was housed within her.

_**Take it with my blessing child, and show this whelp just who the fuck you are.**_

Across the chamber Panthera roared as the swirling dome of wind suddenly glowed a deep blood red. Akane roared from within it and focused her attention fully on her two opponents.

_Time to finish this!_

_**Dark Shadow of the Night, Divine Wind of the Gods, Retribution!**_

"Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Kamikaze Chuutou no Gakushou!!" Akane roared.

The bubble of swirling wind and chakra around her burst, flaring out around the room, causing Genma to shunshin to safety and the gathered observers to duck down to protect themselves. Only the powerful spinning drill of Kiba and Akamaru's Gatsuuga protected the two from being slammed into the walls by the blasting slicing winds.

Now standing still in the center of the room as the winds raged around her Akane's grin darkened.

_**Now, finish them. I grow tired of this farce.**_

Akane couldn't agree more.

"Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Kamikaze Shuukyoku!!"

With her final cry Akane thrust her claws towards the two incoming Gatsuuga's. Around her arms the powerful slicing winds the filled the room focused and funneled, forming two powerful slicing drills of wind.

Kiba and Akamaru didn't stand a chance.

By the time the winds died down and the observers and referee could safely stand and look again Kiba and Akamaru were slumped against the wall, both unconscious. Akane stood in the middle of the room, her sword once again present on her back and wrapped in its red bindings. She was petting both of her large partners and purring contentedly along with them.

"Dammit Akane!! You could have given me more warning that you were going to use that technique!!"

Ren's domineering voice echoed around the room as the green-haired girl yelled at Akane. To everyone who looked it was clear that Ren's hair, which was currently frizzed up and blown every which way around her head, had certainly seen better days.

Akane merely looked up and shrugged before placing a hand on top of the heads of both of her partners. She muttered something that no one could hear and with a puff of smoke the too large jungle cats were back to their small, albeit still feral looking, forms. Both cats hopped onto Akane's shoulders as Genma announced her the winner finally and she began to walk up the stairs to rejoin her friends and teammates.

Back on the Konoha side of the room the reactions were mixed. Sakura was annoyed that the angry black-haired girl had hurt her teammate Kiba, while Hinata and was understandably impressed by her proving that kunoichi can be just as strong as their male counterparts. Chouji was wondering what the girl must eat to have become so strong and Shikamaru was busy trying to determine just how strong the other Nagareboshi genin were based off of what he had seen of their abilities so far and their team dynamics.

It wasn't looking good. Shikamaru prayed to Kami that he didn't end up matched up against one of the three remaining Nagareboshi genin, as he wasn't sure he would be able to beat them. In short, these preliminaries had become vary troublesome.

And Kurenai, Asuma, and Naruto were both wondering where the hell Kakashi was. The silver-haired Jounin should have been there to watch over and encourage his other two students. But instead he was who-knows-where sucking up to the dickless wonder.

A beeping alerted the gathered the attention of the adults and the increasingly nervous genin combatants to the board activating again. They all waited anxiously as it flashed a few times before finally displaying the next match up.

Akimichi Chouji

VS

Rock Lee

Everyone on the Konoha side of the room could practically hear the mantra of "troublesome" that had to be echoing around Nara Shikamaru's skull as his oversized teammated walked down to the floor below, following more sedately behind the extremely over energized Rock Lee. The former was finishing off a bag of chips while the latter kept on spouting random stuff about the "fires of youth." In the balcony above the Konoha Jounin all winced as Gai cheered on his student.

Genma coughed to get their attention and reiterated the rules. When he said begin both genin, surprisingly, were off like lighting.

Rock Lee rushed straight towards Chouji, but the bulkier boy had already performed his Multi-Size and Human Bullet Tank Techniques. Lee was forced to dodge to the side as the rapidly spinning ball of humanity rolled past him. Lee remained standing and watched as Chouji turned slowly in a circle to come back at him.

Unseen by those above Lee grinned. This would be a challenge. He just had to figure out a way to get a decisive hit in on the rotating boy.

As Chouji sped towards him Lee let out an extremely loud cry of "Yosh" before leaping into the air and spinning over Chouji. As the massive ball that was Chouji rolled beneath him Lee slammed his foot into him, delivering a kick that propelled him even faster towards the wall. However, rather than impact the wall and stick into it like most of those above expected, Chouji instead began to roll up the wall before he collided with the underside of the balcony, causing it to shudder as it redirected him and launched him out into mid air.

* * *

The next thing Chouji Akimichi knew Genma was declaring Rock Lee the winner as Chouji looked up into the faces of a worried Shino and Shikamaru, and the ceiling that lay beyond them.

"I guess I lost." Chouji said. His stomach growled, eliciting a raised eyebrow from Shino and a 'troublesome' from Shikamaru. "Hehe, anyone have any food?"

Everyone returned their attention to the board on the wall as Chouji's teammates helped him hobble up the stairs so he could watch the rest of the matches. Finally the fifth match was displayed.

Sabaku no Gaara

VS

Gouzenkaze Arashi

* * *

AN: And there you have it, the first set of matches for the preliminaries. Most of the matches that you have and will see in this were random pairings. Only a few matches were chosen to be in a specific order, due to matters of plot, and only one match was originally selected with both opponents chosen. All the others were names-in-a-hat method. Next chapter will heat up even more, as we have five fights, ending in a spectacular match up that while random I am quite looking forward to writing. Please remember to read and review, as reviews are the lifeblood of the creature that is known as Author. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 22: The Demons Dance.

PS: Please enjoy the below Omake. I wrote it for shits and giggles.

**Phoenix Rising Omake #2: Who the Fuck Do You Think We Are?**

Kiba and Naruto stood side by side, breathing heavily as they faced the nigh indestructible juggernaut that stood before them, an Oto nin named Jirobu.

"Naruto, let's do "that"!" Kiba said with a determined look on his face.

"That?" Naruto replied, thinking for a moment. "Yes, "that" will be very interesting!"

"The two paths between human and beast," Kiba began, his chakra building. "Intertwine, to create the path of the Spiral!"

"Piercing destiny as yesterday's enemies, creating a new path towards the future with these hands!" Naruto cried out as his right hand began to glow with a swirl of chakra, a rasengan forming in his palm.

The two Konoha Shinobi cried out in unison as they leapt forward, both becoming enveloped in swirling drills of chakra and power.

"THE UNION OF FATE GATSUUGA-RASENGAN!!"

The two drills slammed into the massive Jirobu, penetrating every Doton defense he tried to throw up.

"WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK WE ARE?!"

**Technique Names** – Because admit it, you want to know where my mind comes up with these crazy things.

**Kagesekijun no Jutsu**--_Shadow Stalagmite Technique/_ This technique uses the shadow abilities of the Shinomori clan to attack from within their own shadow while using Ugoki ni Kage no Jutsu. Only masters of Ugoki ni Kage can perform it, as the chakra control required to form and control the shadows as a physical weapon. The major flaw of this technique is because it forces the manifestation of the user from the shadows, leaving them vulnerable to counter attack. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Shinomori Clan)

**Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Kamikaze Hajime no Gakushou**--_Dark Shadow of Night: Divine Wind Primary Movement/_ The first movement in Akane's Kamikaze technique. Similar to Kaiten, the user saturates the air around them with chakra and spins, creating a massive swirling dome of wind. Unlike Kaiten, this technique draws on the user's elemental affinity, in this case Akane's wind affinity, and this affects the outcome of the technique. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Nekozuka Akane)

**Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Kamikaze Chuutou no Gakushou**--_Dark Shadow of Night: Divine Wind Secondary Movement/_ The second movement in Akane's Kamikaze technique. It releases the power stored and channeled by the Hajime no Gakushou and releases it in a blinding slicing maelstrom of wind. The technique is most effective in enclosed spaces or against groups of opponents. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Nekozuka Akane)

**Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Kamikaze Shuukyoku**--_Dark Shadow of Night: Divine Wind Final Movement/_ The third and final movement in Akane's Kamikaze technique. It channels the power summoned and then released by the first and second movements into a pair of powerful wind drills released from Akane's arms. Even a near miss by this technique can be devastating as the drills are surrounded by a powerful mass of cutting wind blades. (A-Class Ninjutsu) (Nekozuka Akane)

**Kuraikage no aru Yoru: Ketsueki Tsume**--_Dark Shadow of Night: Blood Claw/_ A special technique unique to Nekozuka Akane's blade. It channels her chakra and converts it, allowing her to extend forth from the nekode claws a massive set of red chakra blades. It greatly increases her damage range. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Nekozuka Akane)

**Kussetsumizu: Kuroi**--_Bending Water: Black/_ First and weakest of the Iro abilities. It uses Kussetsumizu to maneuver a pair of metal orbs to strike a bound and stationary target in the temples in such a way as to render them unconscious. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Suiton: Mizuenjin no Jutsu**--_Water Release: Water Ring Technique/_ This technique condenses massive amounts of water around the user in a floating ring. This ring is then fired outward from the user. It allows one to determine the location of enemies and objects when sight has been hindered, as well as providing a distraction while doing so. (C-Class Ninjutsu)

**Ugoki ni Kage no Jutsu**--_Travel in Shadows Technique/_ This special technique of the Shinomori clan allows the user to hide and travel within their own shadow. It is a powerful stealth technique for infiltration and assassination, but it has a high chakra capacity and requires extremely good chakra control. Only one in thirty members of the Shinomori clan can perform it, much less master it. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Shinomori Clan)

**Review Responses** – I will really enjoy this section next time.

Knives91 – Thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, as the preliminaries have finally begun.

Moonfal – As always a pleasure to hear from you my friend. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, particularly since I've begun to display certain abilities of some of the new characters. I particularly enjoyed displaying Kuraikage no aru Yoru, as it is the first time I get to display more and hint more about the nature of what is behind some of the Nagareboshi characters. Needless to say, I had fun with it.

samueltm2 – Why thank you. I hope you enjoyed this one.

rain alchemist – Thank you, I had fun developing that interaction. And Naruto only knows the little comments he got from the Nagareboshi genin when he first encountered them. He is not aware that he is a descendant of the Gouzenkaze, as for several reasons that has been kept from him.

Jaa ne, Mel.

-ZI

scione – Well, I can't please everyone. They are an integral part of the story though, and I am fast approaching a point where their importance and existence becomes inexorably linked with Naruto's own.

jbalman – I'm sorry that I couldn't meet your request, but the simple fact is that Sasuke making it to the finals is very necessary for the plot. That and Tsubaki let her guard down in her anger rather than finishing the bastard when she had the chance.

Chrisdz – Thank you. I hope you liked this one as well.

Okiro Zangetsu – Hehe. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well my friend.

galidarion – Tiny typos happen. So sue me. As for Youso Yuugou, there was absolutely no mention of anything like that in the description. ^_^ But there is if you go back to chapter 9. There is a Kussetsukaze ability that is pretty much the air scooter, and with good reason too.

AnimeFanatic5602 – Thank you. It means a lot to hear a fan say that. And yes, while it's true that it is annoying for someone to flame me for not following canon, the simple fact is that flames will happen. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well, plus all the others that have been put up after the chapter you reviewed at. ^_^

raiton uzamaki – Thank you.

bandgsecurtiyaw – Thank you.


	22. Chapter 22: The Demons Dance

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

* * *

Chapter 22: The Demons Dance

Sabaku no Gaara

VS

Arashi Gouzenkaze

A collective gasped echoed around the room from those who had encountered Gaara. The strange Suna genin put everyone on edge, and for once several people around the room were worried.

Naruto looked across the room and noticed that as Gaara walked slowly towards the ground, his arms crossed as usual and his perpetual frown on his face, Arashi was in whispered conversation with his teammates and sensei. Even with his above-normal senses Naruto couldn't even begin to hear their words, but the serious looks on their faces and the way they kept glancing nervously towards Gaara told him that they were actually worried about this match.

Given the showing by the Nagareboshi genin so far that would only make sense if Gaara was truly something dangerous in their book, and given the fact that the three Nagareboshi shinobi had apparently encountered Gaara before, if their previous intercession on behalf of Teams 7 and 8 was to be taken as example, they apparently knew something that the Konoha shinobi did not.

Finally Naruto saw Arashi sigh and the blond boy leapt over the railing, plummeting towards the ground and landing in a crouch. Naruto didn't see any hand seals, but he could have sworn that the shorter blond had slowed just before he landed. Naruto turned to Hinata, but saw that his girlfriend was not using her Byakugan, and it was too late for it to do any good anyways. Naruto sighed and turned his attention back to the ground as Arashi and Gaara stood opposite of one another.

Arashi, who had normally been so cheerful whenever Naruto had encountered him, had a deep frown on his face and his eyes were narrowed. The boy had one hand on the hilt of his sword and the other held in front of him in a one-handed seal. His green clothes and black body armor seemed to darken in the bright light of the room, almost as if they were trying to hide from it. Arashi narrowed his eyes as Gaara stood calmly with his arms crossed.

As Genma told the two combatants to begin Kankurou inched over next to Sora. The red head was standing with his arms crossed, reminding Kankurou eerily of his own brother with that dark frown on his face, but Kankurou swallowed his fear and tried to put on a confident exterior.

"I'm not sure what kind of attacks your friend blondie there uses, but there is no way he can defeat Gaara." Kankurou said, waiting expectantly for some outburst from the Nagareboshi genin beside him.

Kankurou was after all a prankster at heart, but he never got to practice it since his younger brother scared him half to death. The response he got from Sora did not satisfy his need either.

"I know." Sora said calmly, his voice seemingly dark and devoid of emotion.

Kankurou shuddered and scooted away. Sora really reminded him of his brother now. As He turned his attention back to the floor below, where neither combatant had made a move, he failed to notice that Sora's eyes had changed. The whites and irises of his eyes had turned pitch black, distinguishable from one another only by a crimson ring. His pupil had turned a deep threatening blue, and three blue triangles spun slowly around it, their tips pointed inward.

On the floor below something finally happened. Arashi, who had been standing stock still and observing Gaara nodded, tightening his grip on the handle of his sword. He changed the hand seal of his right hand and in one flourishing motion drew the sword that should have been far too large to him to even carry, much less wield. He was obscured momentarily as the bright yellow wrapping of his blade spiraled out around him, and when the observers could again see him his sword had vanished. He instead held in his right hand a large silver bo-staff.

Arashi grinned.

"Earth. A strong element, hardy, good for defense, and if you know how to use it right deadly dangerous for offense." He began as he began spinning the bo-staff faster and faster.

In the balconies above several people gasped as they noticed an odd sand appearing behind Arashi and beginning to gather into a single mass. The only change of expression on Gaara's face was to narrow his eyes.

"It can even render one nigh invulnerable to attack, and completely immune to the destructive power of wind." Arashi grinned at Gaara and crouched, the bo-staff held out behind him and still spinning. "But it has one very serious and dangerous weakness."

Arashi's grin deepened as he performed a hand seal. Suddenly, his bo-staff began crackling with electricity.

Before anyone even realized he had moved Arashi was on the other side of the room, lashing out at Gaara's head with his staff. As everyone watched in amazement a mass of sand swarmed up before the blow even got close, taking the full impact of the staff.

In the stands above Kankurou and Temari's eyes widened as they witnessed something they had never seen in their life. Arashi's strike may have been turned away, but as they watched him use the sand's momentum to redirect his movement he suddenly twisted in a strange, harsh and hard strike and launched a straight punch at Gaara, towards a spot devoid of sand.

A lightning bolt leapt from his clenched fist and struck true. It did not seem to phase Gaara much, but his already spiky hair was suddenly frizzy and threatening to turn into an afro. Arashi grinned as he flipped away from the counterattack by Gaara's sand.

In the balconies above Naruto's jaw had dropped in surprise at Gaara's use of sand and Arashi's surprising maneuver. He promptly closed his mouth, hoping that nobody had noticed, and then began to grin.

_Oooh. Sasuke's going to be royally pissed that he missed this…_

_**Who cares what that bastard thinks, Kit. You just pay close attention. Something isn't right about that Gaara boy. I almost feel like I know him from somewhere…but where?**_

Kyuubi's musings drifted off as the demon retreated into the depths of Naruto's mind in search of the answers she sought.

Back on the floor below Arashi was giving Gaara's sand a merry chase, occasionally launching more low-powered lightning bolts at it to fuse it into glass for a few moments before Gaara reconstituted it's grainy structure. In the balconies many people began to wonder about this strange blond haired boy's chakra capacity, since he was using such chakra intensive attacks without seeming to suffer any loss of energy.

Finally, when Gaara seemed to be literally growling and his sand seemed to be forcing him into a corner Arashi grinned and began to spin his bo-staff faster.

"You haven't moved once during this fight Gaara, not once. And that complacency leaves you with one major, match ending weakness. Prepare to learn why they call me the Lightning Wind of the North House."

Arashi's grin deepened for a moment.

"Arashi, you were forbidden to use that technique during your match. Pull out immediately. We have all the information we need on Sabaku no Gaara at this time."

Arashi nearly dropped his bo-staff as he turned to gaze up at his sensei in shock. Around the room many people shared looks of confusion. Baki narrowed his eyes, wondering if the Nagareboshi Jounin knew…

"But sensei!! I was just about to impress Ren-chan!!"

A snort from the green haired girl on the Nagareboshi genin's team drew the attention of all the surprised observers as well as Gaara, who was quite irate that someone had interfered with his fight.

"As if, baka. You know I only like women, so you never even had a chance." Ren replied, emphasizing her statement by looking across at the remaining conscious member of Team 7 and winking at her.

Haruno Sakura very nearly fainted as she finally realized that the green haired girl wasn't interested in Sasuke, she was interested in HER.

Arashi sighed and turned back around. For a moment he almost looked like he was going to attack Gaara any ways, holding his hand out in front of him self in a one-handed seal.

He whispered something so quietly that no one could here it and suddenly the bo-staff in his hand vanished in a puff of smoke, and when the smoke cleared his sword was once again wrapped in yellow and strapped onto his back.

He stood up and sighed and then looked at Genma, completely ignoring the wave of sand that was coming his way.

"I give up." The blond boy said mere moments before Gaara's sand pounded through where he had been standing.

Fortunately for the boy he was no longer there by the time the sand had arrived.

"Think I'll ever get a chance to prove my self Ren-chan?" He asked dejectedly as he appeared out of a wind shunshin on the balcony next to his teammates, dusting a few stray flecks of sand off of his clothes.

Ren sighed, speaking quietly so that only her teammates could hear, a sad look on her face. "You've proven your self countless of times, Arashi. I'm just not into guys. Period. End of story. I'm sorry, but that's just the way it is."

Arashi sighed again and slumped his shoulders as he leant over the railing, watching a very irate Gaara march off the floor and up the stairs. "I know, Ren, I know."

Naruto would have been interested in observing the Nagareboshi genin, if the next match hadn't been declared already, gaining a shocked gasp from his teammate and lover, Hinata.

Naruto turned to see what the board was displaying and let out a curse of such vibrancy that several Jounin in the room made mental notes to write it down.

Hyuuga Neji

VS

Hyuuga Hinata

Hinata swallowed deeply and turned to face her boyfriend as her cousin marched past them and towards the floor below.

"Shhh, Hime, don't worry. You can do this. I believe in you." Naruto whispered softly as he stroked his girlfriend's cheek to calm her down.

Hinata took a deep breath and opened her eyes, smiling despite the hard edge of determination on her face.

"I will prove my worth Naruto. Just watch me." Hinata darted forward and captured Naruto's lips with her own for a brief moment before running past him and down the steps.

Hinata and Neji face off quickly, Hinata's face a look of grim determination, Neji's a smirk of contemptuous superiority. The bastard began a spiel on fate and destiny and all that crap, but Hinata barely heard a word of his bullshit. She was concentrating, preparing for what she instinctively knew was going to be the hardest fight of her young life to date.

"Begin" Genma said, and the battle was joined. Hinata and Neji rushed one another and began an eerie dance of feints, dodges, and strikes. The two Jyuuken users circled one another as they both strived to gain a crippling blow.

After nearly a minute of fighting, wherein neither managed to land anything more than a glancing blow with their Jyuuken strikes, Neji managed to catch Hinata in the side, causing her to fall back clutching at her side. Neji paused for a moment and smirked.

"I already told you, Destiny has decreed that you are weaker and that you shall fall to me, and so it shall be. Nothing you do can change that."

Hinata practically growled at her cousin and brought her hands together to perform a series of hand seals. Neji's smirk vanished momentarily as he was forced to dodge as a ball of lightning shot past him, narrowly missing his head. Neji glared at Hinata and took to the offensive again, pushing the advantage against his weakened opponent. In the balcony above Naruto realized that Hinata's confidence seemed to be failing after she received that first blow.

"Come on Hinata, you can do it!! I Believe in you!!" He called out, cupping his hands around his mouth to amplify his voice.

On the floor below Hinata's eyes narrowed and she clenched her fists.

_Naruto…Naruto believe in me. I must prove myself to him. I WILL win. I WILL defeat Neji. Nothing else matters…_

With renewed determination Hinata's hands flew through a series of hand seals, her hands crackling with electricity.

"Neji-ni-san, now you lose." She said simply and with determination.

Hinata leapt forward, using everything she had learned since joining Team 8. She lashed out with her fists, attempting to strike a crippling blow on Neji. She was no longer using Jyuuken, instead fighting with a style much more reminiscent of Lee's Goken power moves. But thanks to the lightning she was channeling through her hands thanks to her affinity, which was quite an unusual one for a Hyuuga, even a near miss or a block was dangerous for Neji. The older boy suddenly found him self on the defensive, unable to get a successful counter in against his younger cousin and receiving shock after shock from the near misses.

His eyes narrowed as his anger grew. He couldn't keep this up forever, as sooner or later Hinata would get lucky and strike a direct blow against his body, allowing the entirety of the lightning surrounding her hands to discharge. Neji focused his Byakugan on her hands and arms and noted just how the chakra there flowed, and how she was controlling the lightning. He leapt backward and sneered.

"It's over Hinata." He said as he took a stance that Hinata was only barely familiar with. "You are within the field of my Hakke."

Her father had refused to teach her this technique after all, but it would appear that Neji had somehow mastered it on his own. Somewhere deep inside Hinata realized that her father would likely take his nephew under his wing after this fight, and she was surprised to find that she felt a pang of sadness at that thought. Her introspective thoughts were not to last.

"Hakke Rokujūyon Shō!" Neji cried out as Hinata rushed him.

The watching genin all gasped as Neji suddenly blurred into action, his strikes raining down on Hinata and causing her to cry out in pain as she was suddenly stopped and trapped by his blows. As they watched Neji struck out at her arms and her body, raining down blows. Finally he struck two final blows and leapt away as Hinata's body was wracked in pain. The lightning that had previously been contained and controlled in her hands broke free and arced around her body.

Hinata barely heard Naruto's cry as she collapsed and blackness began to claim her.

Neji sneered down at his collapsed cousin as Genma declared him the winner. Naruto had appeared by his girlfriend's side in a leaf shunshin the moment she had collapsed and was currently cradling her head while he waited anxiously for the medic nins to arrive. Kurenai was at their side nearly as fast.

"She was weak. It was her destiny to fall. As is yours. She was a loser…just like you."

Naruto looked up at Neji's mocking words, his eyes cold. They narrowed as Naruto placed Hinata carefully on a stretcher.

"Destiny is a load of crock Neji. You're a dissatisfied bully with an inferiority complex." Naruto said as he took out a kunai and calmly sliced his palm. The blond boy held out his hand in a fist and let the blood flow out between his fingers. "I swear, Neji. When we meet in battle, I will crush you. I will show you just what I think of your fate, your destiny. Yes, when we meet in battle, you will lose."

Naruto's eyes remained narrowed and his jaw clenched as Neji shot daggers at him before turning and walking towards his teammates. Unsurprisingly, both Lee and TenTen were eyeing him with some trepidation after his treatment of his cousin.

Across the room Kabatsu Sora narrowed his eyes. Neji was a fool. He seemed to honestly believe that bullcrap that he spouted about fate and destiny, and that made him dangerous to everyone around him. Silently Sora made a mental note to report that information to his mother. If they were considering an alliance then they needed all the information on possible psychotic cases in Konoha's forces that they could get.

Naruto was another thing entirely. Sora could see the determination on the boy. He could very nearly see the aura of power and dedication that swirled around him, even without his eyes 'on'. He was truly shaping up to be an honor to his name and his father, without a shadow of a doubt.

A beeping sound once again drew Sora's attention to the screen above and he looked up at it slowly, mildly curious as to who would be fighting next. When he saw the names displayed his face split in a purely evil grin.

Kabatsu Sora

VS

Akadou Yoroi

Sora cast an almost manic grin towards the masked Konoha shinobi as he made his way towards the floor. He was an unknown, having very little data in the Nagareboshi Bingo Book, which made this match all the more interesting for Sora. He liked surprises. They always livened up his life.

Sora looked to his teammates who both grinned and gave him a thumbs up before Sora reached for the railing and leapt over, flipping into the air and speeding towards the ground with his arms crossed across his chest. He landed softly and stood back up, still grinning.

"Well Akadou, let's have a fun fight, you hear? I've been bored lately, so I could use some excitement." Sora said, yawning to emphasize his point.

This elicited a few chuckles from those who knew him well. Sora was just playing with the man. To Sora, this was just a appetizer to the true meal, which would be the finals. As Akadou palmed a pair of shuriken Sora merely stretched. When both opponents were ready Genma finally stepped forward to begin the match.

"You both know the rules. Begin the match."

Akadou launched the shuriken immediately, barely waiting for Genma to finish starting the match. Sora merely smirked and remained standing with his arms crossed. Just as the shuriken were about to hit he vanished in a flame shunshin, reappearing in midair in the center of the room, his sword drawn and plummeting towards the ground.

As Sora fell towards the ground Naruto watched the sword. Underneath the black wrapping that had spread out around Sora in a spiral the blade was a glossy black. There were silver kanji engraved near the base of the blade and both sides appeared to have an identical image engraved in silver along it. The edge also glinted dangerously, almost reminding Naruto of crystal.

Naruto's ears perked up as he heard Sora's voice cry out.

"Spirits of the dark beyond, servants of the Void, bless this battlefield so that glorious battle may be met! Yamiakuma no Koukyo!"

Sora's sword glowed with a dark purple light and Sora slammed his massive blade straight down into the ground as he landed, but instead of shattering the earth like most of the gathered expected the glowing blade merely sank in like a knife through warm butter. Akadou snorted and was about to taunt his seemingly foolish opponent when a wave of black suddenly swept out from the sword, flowing over everyone.

Those in the balconies shivered. The burst of chakra had felt to many as if something had just walked on their graves. Moments after it passed the room suddenly became filled with floating ghostly images of dead people and demons. Akadou Yoroi frantically tried to cancel whatever sort of genjutsu this was, but his 'Kai's had no effect whatsoever.

"Welcome to Yamiakuma no Koukyo. Enjoy the ride, cuz it might be your last." Sora's voice rang mockingly across the room.

There was a flash of light and suddenly the images all vanished, although the eerie feeling of impending doom had not. Sora smirked across at the glaring Yoroi as he walked towards him, arms crossed across his chest.

"What the hell was that?" Akadou snarled as he crouched.

Sora cocked his head slightly, like a bird or a lizard might do.

"I already told you. If you want to know what it does, you'll have to wait and see." Sora said as he continued to smirk. "But I will tell you this."

Sora dropped his arms from his chest and leant forward as if he were whispering conspiratorially to Yoroi, quite a feat given there was still ten feet between the two.

"You better not get close enough for me to hit you, or my victory will be guaranteed."

Sora's grin widened as he flipped backwards, dodging a pair of kunai as he did so. As he came back up to his feet he was forced to dodge to the side as a pissed Yoroi came at him, swiping at him with his glowing right hand. There were gasps from above as Sora rolled and came back up to his feet with some difficulty. His arm was hanging at his side and he kept looking incredulously between it and his opponent.

"What the hell?! You just drained my chakra you fucker!!" He yelled across at Yoroi.

Behind his mask Yoroi smirked. If this idiot lost the use of his arm after one drain then he must be pretty weak after all.

"Yes I did. It's a bloodline, so sue me."

Sora clenched his fists, even as the rest of his arm still hung limply, and growled between clenched teeth.

"What's wrong pretty boy? Did you waste all your chakra on that fancy intimidation technique of yours? Or are you just weak?" Yoroi taunted as he rushed Sora, lashing out with another strike.

This time when Sora dodged and rolled back to his feet he was standing slightly hunched over, both arms dangling limply.

"Heh, at this rate you won't last more than a few seconds if I get a hit in on you. I don't even understand how you even made it through the second exam if you don't even have the chakra capacity for a real fight." Yoroi continued taunting Sora, heedless to Sora sniffing the air or the sudden look of rage that manifested on his face.

Within Sora's mind a pair of dark purple eyes, slitted like a cat or a lizard's, stared out of a cloud of pure darkness. From within the darkness emerged a deep bass voice, dark and intimidating.

_**Brat, can you smell that? This bastard, he has the taint upon him. Let us send him to the Shinigami, where he belongs.**_

Sora muttered something too softly for Yoroi to even hear.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Yoroi asked, enjoying taunting this little punk.

"I'll kill you, you snake loving bastard." Sora repeated loud enough for only the two of them to hear. "I can smell his taint all over you. I may not be able to kill him yet, but I can satisfy my bloodlust by killing you."

Sora's arms suddenly moved as if there had never been anything wrong with them and he pulled two scrolls out of holders on his legs. As he spoke again his voice deepened into a growl.

"**Prepare to learn why you never mess with someone who carries a big sword.**"

Sora leapt into the air and flung the scrolls open to his sides, both charged with chakra.

"**Akuma no Arashi no Jutsu!**" He cried out.

Both scrolls went up in flames and two massive clouds of flaming kunai flew forth, converging on Akadou Yoroi. The older man dodged backwards while tossing several kunai of his own to try to create an opening. When the dust settled from the impacts of several hundred kunai on the floor Yoroi was revealed to be standing in the middle of a circle of kunai. Miraculously he hadn't been hit by a single one. Twenty feet of way Sora stood slightly bent over, breathing heavily.

In the balcony above Rock Lee's female teammate, TenTen, was staring down with dreamy hearts in her eyes.

"Your aim leaves much to be desired." Yoroi said with derision.

Wasting no more time Yoroi leapt forward over the sea of kunai and struck, on arm grabbing Sora's throat and the other grabbing the one arm he feebly tried to bring up to defend himself. There were gasps from the Konoha side of the chamber, but Naruto noticed that not a single member of the Nagareboshi contingent had batted an eye. In fact, that strange Jounin with the brown hair and the odd hitai-ate was smiling widely.

_Just what do you know that we don't?_ Naruto thought before returning his attention to the fight below.

Akadou Yoroi was just preparing to celebrate his victory when he realized something odd.

He had been holding onto Sora and draining him for thirty seconds now.

Given how little chakra capacity he apparently had he should have passed out unconscious ten seconds ago.

And Sora was smiling.

"**Figured it out haven't you, baka.**" Sora said cheerfully as he opened his eyes. Akadou's eyes widened as he stared into the strange nearly pitch black eyes of his opponent, just before he twisted his body out of Akadou's grip and sent the man flying back towards the circle in the center of the kunai field with a side-kick to the gut.

Sora stood, as bright and chipper as ever and showing absolutely no signs of chakra depletion now.

"**I'd say it was a pleasure knowing you, but the truth is, traitors like you simply make me sick**." Sora said in a falsely sweet voice that he somehow managed despite the deep growl. "**You're about to learn just what that technique I used at the beginning was for. Give my regards to the Shinigami.**"

Around the room several people's eyes widened as Sora held out his arm palm open and facing up.

"**Kussetsukinzoku: Senya no Jutsu.**" Sora said calmly, closing his fist tightly.

All around Akadou Yoroi a thousand kunai shot into the air and formed a dome around him. Before he even had time to blink all thousand metal ninja knives struck home. Akadou's screams as his body was shredded by the thousand metal talons of Kabatsu Sora were cut off almost as soon as they had begun. Around the room people's blood ran cold as those who were sensitive to the spirit realm saw the brief image of the Shinigami hovering in the air over the bloody pile of what had once been a Konoha shinobi.

"**Checkmate.**" Sora said coldly as he let his hand drop to his side.

Silently the red-headed shinobi turned and walked towards the stairs leading back up to the balconies. He grabbed the hilt of his sword as he passed and in one fluid motion drew the massive black blade and swung it up to his back. He vanished in a puff of smoke and when it cleared the blade was once again wrapped and strapped securely to his back.

He didn't react when Genma finally announced him the winner.

Naruto watched as the mysterious older shinobi ascended their stairs and then walked slowly to join his teammates. He took note of how Temari, the blond suna-genin, seemed to have eyes only for Sora, and how she kept sliding slowly towards him. He took note of how Sora leant against the wall, belying the exhaustion he must really be feeling. The boy had no smile on his face and clearly was not happy about the out come of the fight. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he tried to figure out why someone who had seemed so nice before could be so ruthless against a shinobi of a village he claimed to respect.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's assessment had been completely different. The red headed shinobi had called Akadou a traitor, and had as good as declared the man a servant of Orochimaru. On the second day of the second exam Sarutobi had woken to find that someone had managed to break into his quarters undetected and had left him a note. Sarutobi had opened it to find it unsigned, but again bearing that strange emblem of a dragon coming forth from an erupting volcano.

The note had had but a single line.

"Orochimaru has infiltrated the exams."

Sarutobi didn't know who was leaving these notes or what their intentions were, but he chose to trust his instincts that whoever it was meant Konoha no harm.

A beeping sound drew the old man out of his thoughts and back to the work at hand. He turned to look up at the electronic board just as it displayed the next match. Apparently the chunin had finished clearing the dead body and the mass of kunai from the arena.

Tsuchi Kin

VS

Domonami Ren

Ren chuckled and turned to her two teammates.

"Sorry boys, but it looks like I get all the luck. Don't worry, I'll make sure to deal a blow or two to this Oto-teme in your names." She said with bravado as she began to stalk towards the stairs, following her would-be opponent down.

Sora merely chuckled exhaustedly and stepped forward to lean against the railing, clearly exhausted but recovering. Next to him Arashi sent Ren a big grin before joining his teammate at the railing.

Genma explained the rules, this time with very special emphasis on the parts about how to win, and emphasizing that killing, while allowed, was heavily discouraged.

Ren merely smirked and said "whatever" while Kin glared daggers at the other girl.

_Why the hell was she blessed with such beautiful eyes and hair when I was given nothing but plain, average, every day colors?! I'll make her wish she had never been born!_ Kin railed in her mind as she and her opponent bowed to one another before Genma started the match.

As soon as Genma said "Begin" Ren was on the move. Instead of rushing her opponent though she circled her, launching off several barraged of shuriken at the dark-haired girl. Ren's eyes were narrowed and unlike her two teammates she did not seem inclined to say a word during her match.

Kin on the other hand attempted to hit her assailant with senbon needles as she strived frantically to dodge the near constant bombardment. About twenty seconds later the two girls both stopped moving, facing off and glaring at one another. Ren was about to toss another round of shuriken when she heard the sound of bells and the world around her suddenly distorted. She found herself in an empty room with no sign of anyone else. She attempted to dispel the genjutsu, but when it proved non-reactive to all her attempts she frowned and drew a scroll.

"Pretty girls like you have no business being ninja. I'll torment you by ruining your looks before I finish you off." Kin's melodic and taunting voice echoed throughout the seemingly empty room.

Ren frowned and held the scroll between her hands as she flashed through a series of seals.

"Mizutama no Jutsu."

The scroll puffed out of existence and reappeared on the ground beneath Ren's feet. It unrolled and a torrent of water spouted forth, flowing around Ren until it formed a complete sphere. As the sphere closed fully the illusion of an empty room suddenly vanished.

"Sorry Kin, but water distorts sound. Now your mine." Ren said as she smirked at the Oto-nin.

Before Kin, who had approached and was standing six feet behind Ren, could react, Ren spun and struck forward with an open-palmed strike. The water that surrounded her suddenly focused in front of her palm and lashed out, slamming Kin into the wall and onto several of her own senbon. Ren didn't give the Oto-nin a chance to do anything.

Before it had fully registered to Kin that she had been impaled on her own senbon she found a sudden swirling torrent of water pressing her up against the wall. Her eyes widened as she recognized the technique that that strange blue-haired Nagareboshi boy had used earlier against the blond Konoha kunoichi.

"And now, it's time for lights out Oto-teme." Ren smirked, her voice as close to being a snarl as you could get without actually being one.

As the prone Kin watched a third blast of water flowed leisurely through the air and surrounded her head. She thrashed against the chakra-enhanced water with all her might, but she just wasn't strong enough to break free. Everyone watched in silence as Ren maintained the water control over the girl until Kin finally ceased struggling.

"Well? Aren't you going to announce me the winner?" Ren asked as she turned her head to look at Genma.

The surprised Konoha shinobi hurriedly declared Ren the winner, sighing with relief when Ren dropped her technique as soon as the match was over. Medic nins hurried to the side of the unconscious girl, rushing to get the water out of her lungs that she had swallowed as she drowned.

Ren didn't care. The green haired girl walked back up the stairs to rejoin her teammates, happy that her match was finally over. She was too focused on thoughts of taking a nice long bath after this was over to notice the very dark looks that Kinuta Dosu and Abumi Zaku were shooting her as she passed.

As the green haired kunoichi leant against the railing next to her friends and teammates she glanced up at the screen, just in time to see it change to display the next match. When she saw who was competing she smirked.

_This should be fun to watch._

_**You said it, Ren.**_ A voice said inside her mind, followed my a wolfish chuckle.

Namikaze Naruto

VS

Aburame Shino

Back on the Konoha side Naruto and Shino both turned to silently regard one another. As if by prearrangement the two teenagers nodded slightly to one another before turning and walking calmly towards the floor, both wrapped up in their thoughts.

Naruto was busy hoping that his girlfriends were both okay, and silently wishing that they could be here to give him strength. After all, Naruto takes no pleasure from hurting his comrades in arms, even if it is necessary.

Shino on the other hand was remembering everything that he knew about the blond boy. He remembered that the boy had mastered the Kage Bunshin technique and that he had a penchant for using these odd three-pronged kunai. He remembered that the boy had an abominably large chakra capacity and was primarily a close range fighter as well, and there-in lied Shino's opening. If he could keep the boy distracted by a close range fight he could attach his bugs to him and drain his chakra. Yes, that was the logical course of action against one such as Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto.

Too bad it wouldn't be enough.

As Shino and Naruto took their places across from one another the two Konoha genin bowed low to one another, surprising most of the viewers. Such a show of respect to an opponent was generally unheard of among shinobi and spoke volumes as to how much the two genin respected the other's honor.

"Naruto."

Everyone stopped and their attention turned to the Sandaime Hokage as the old man removed his pipe from his mouth and addressed the blond shinobi. Naruto looked up at him with mild confusion on his face, his long blond hair hanging loose behind his head as Naruto was not wearing his head wrap.

"Order Delta Seven is hereby rescinded for the duration of your match. Good luck."

As most of the room's occupants, excluding the Konoha Jounin aware of the order and Sakura who had witnessed this once before, looked on in confusion a massive fox-like grin suffused Naruto's face as he turned to face Shino again.

"Sorry Shino, but I'm going to go all out in our match. I hope you can forgive me for any injuries that might occur." He said matter of factly as he crouched slightly.

Shino noted with some interest that Naruto's eyes were now a deep purple, quite a change from his standard bright blue. He also noted that Naruto's already enlarged canines appeared to have increased in length, and the scar marks on his cheeks had enlarged as well.

"Begin!"

As soon as Genma began the match Naruto's hands and feet became wreathed in purple chakra and both boys blurred into action. Naruto's strikes with the two tri-tipped kunai that found their way into his hands were quickly blocked and countered by a pair of straight blades that extended out of Shino's coat.

Naruto had a grin of honest appreciation on his face as he noted that Shino had obviously been training hard.

"Nice counter Shino." Naruto said blithely as he flipped backwards away from Shino's offensive, launching six kunai towards the taller boy.

Shino easily deflected the kunai with his blades and pressed the offensive, driving towards Naruto and stabbing forward with his blades. To his surprise Naruto didn't dodge or block, instead taking them straight in the chest. Shino's logical mind was already coming to the conclusion that the Naruto in front of him was actually one of Naruto's vaunted Kage Bunshin as the blond figure vanished in a puff of smoke, but it was too little too late.

"Ten."

Naruto's deep growling voice from behind Shino's head as a chakra enhanced punch slammed into his lower back, sending the bug user flying foward.

"Nine."

A second Naruto appeared in front of Shino in a puff of smoke. As Naruto's open palm strike threw Shino backwards Shino's mind was already processing the data that the second Naruto had transformed from one of the tri-tipped kunai.

"Eight." "Seven." "Six."

Shino heard Naruto's voice echo from three different directions as three more Kage Bunshin kicked him, slamming him into the air and towards the ceiling.

_More than one Kage Bunshin at once._ Shino realized as he rocketed into the air.

"Five." Shino took a blow to the side, causing him to spin like a drill.

"Four." He took a second blow to the same spot as the ceiling rapidly approached.

"Three." As he saw another clone appear before him on the ceiling Shino took a sweeping blow to his legs, flipping him over and so his entire body was flying flat towards an impact with the ceiling.

"Two." Shino received a powerful kick to the chest from the clone on the ceiling, redirecting his momentum straight back towards the ground..

"One." The real Naruto watched from his spot next to Genma as his final clone added one last kick to Shino's side, accelerating the spin before he could finally hit the ground.

"Jyuu ni Ichi no Rendan." Naruto said softly as his opponent slammed into the ground

But rather than drill into the ground as planned Shino's mass hit and disintegrated into a spreading black mass. Naruto barely had time to leap back and stick onto the large statue of a hand seal before his pervious position had been overwhelmed by a swarm of bugs.

"Bug clone?!" He exclaimed in wide eyed amazement, moments before he twisted and leapt away from the statue.

This had the benefit of keeping Naruto from being skewered on another bladed strike from Shino who calmly turned and looked at him. Naruto wondered why Shino wasn't pressing the attack when he realized something all too late.

His dodge had the added effect of placing him solidly in midair with nothing to push of off in order to instigate movement and he was falling towards the rising swarm of Shino's bugs.

There were multiple gasps from the balcony above as Naruto growled and disappeared into the mass of bugs.

Behind his mask Shino allowed himself the tiniest twitch of a smile in victory. He would regret that hastiness in the moments to come.

"**Kitsune Kata: Chakra Myaku!"** Naruto's growling voice echoed from within the mass of bugs, deeper than it had been just moments before.

Shino winced as his bugs burst in a massive flare of roiling purple chakra. The chakra roiled away from Naruto, dissipating slowly before reaching the balconies or Shino himself. Naruto was revealed standing in the middle of this destruction with purple chakra roiling around and clinging to the growling figure of Naruto like a dark purple flame

"**Time to end this.**" Naruto growled as the bugs clinging to him burned away.

Behind their glasses Shino's eyes widened as the feral and dangerous looking figure before him stood and turned to face him.

"**Kitsune Kata: Onsoku Ken Ryoku!**" Naruto's growling cry was punctuated by a brief flare and then condensation of the chakra around him.

Within moments Naruto's skin was covered by a thin layer of purple chakra, his hands and feet shrouded in what looked like chakra claws. With a growling cry Naruto leapt at Shino, the ground shredding behind him as he sped towards the bug user at near imperceptible speeds. With a loud crash Naruto's fist connected with Shino's sternum and the larger boy was punched straight through the raised fingers of the statue, slamming into the wall beyond it.

As Shino began to fall towards the ground his mind registered one last thought.

_Addendum to data on Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto. Do not underestimate the fox._

Naruto landed beside Shino, the purple chakra receding and vanishing as he calmed down. Naruto lifted the collapsed boy and carried him carefully over to flat ground where he could lay him out flat. As the medic nins approached Naruto stepped back and clenched his fists tightly, closing his eyes and taking deep methodical breaths.

As the medic nins lifted Shino onto a stretcher and carried the Aburame boy from the room Naruto unclenched his fists and opened his eyes, which were once again their usual bright blue. He turned and looked up both at the balconies and the board. He saw the winners of the previous matches regarding him with an appraising eye, while the eight remaining competitors had a mixture of emotions on their faces.

Zaku and Dosu were both frowning at the blond boy, hoping they didn't have to fight him in the finals.

Kankuro and Temari were both frowning down at him as well. They were likewise hoping that they would not be forced to fight the boy in the finals.

TenTen and Shikamaru both regarded Naruto with calm looks as both of their minds worked furiously. TenTen was calculating the damage a weapons user like her could do when combined with Naruto's Kage Bunshin. Shikamaru was calculating how troublesome it would be if he had to fight the blond, as his Kage Bunshin would be a real problem.

Misumi Tsurugi regarded him with an impassive look. No one could tell what was going on in his head.

And last but not least, Sakura was staring down at the blond boy in shock. Sure, she had seen the boy's actions during the mission to the Wave, but her fangirl mind had just written them off as flukes or favoritism by his instructor. No way he could be better than her Sasuke-kun…could he? Sakura began to wonder if she had been wrong to break off friendship with Ino just because she thought Ino was trying to steal Sasuke. Maybe Ino had been right about the Namikaze heir after all.

A familiar beeping sound drew everyone's attentions again as the tenth match appeared on the board.

Sabaku no Temari

VS

Kinuta Dosu

* * *

In a small, dusty apartment in Konoha a fiery red-haired woman let out a breath she hadn't been aware she had been holding as she reverently withdrew a crystalline sphere a few inches in diameter from a strange device inside an industrial strength freezer. The sphere was a mixture of swirling purple and red, with just a hint of black at the center.

Kabatsu Cora smiled genuinely as she held the strange sphere carefully in her hands. It had been the work of over a year to gather the necessary 'materials' but she finally held the finished product of her labors in her hands.

Cora spoke quietly, almost reverently over the sphere, as if christening it.

"Gravity Nova."

The sphere seemed to shimmer slightly in response to being named.

* * *

AN: Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! (Even if you don't live in America you can still celebrate, as this is the day I affectionately call "Gorge yourself til you drop day.") I have managed to find the time in and around making a Zaion Indulias Special (recipe to follow) and helping my mom make Thanksgiving dinner to finish up the final fight for this chapter and get it out to you. I hope that you all enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.

This chapter marks the midpoints of the preliminaries, as well as most of the demon-powered battles for them. I'll leave it to you readers to figure out just who possesses a demon and who doesn't. I had a lot of fun with this chapter since I was able to display a bit more of Sora's abilities, as well as Ren's sadistic streak. She's one kunoichi you definitely don't want to piss off when she's on her period. I also got to display quirks of certain characters as well. I'm sure some of my readers have noticed the similarity between the massive swords that the Nagareboshi genin wield, at least insofar as they all transform into new forms when actually wielded. This and so much more will be revealed shortly (relatively within the story that is). Do not worry, by the time the Chunin exams are over the mystery behind Sora and his friends will be fully explained.

Also, there is an omake this chapter, so enjoy this tiny bit of my lame humor.

As always, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please remember to read and review. Reviews always keep my spirits afloat and give me encouragement to keep writing. Next time on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 23: The Final Four.

**Thanksgiving Day Special: Zaion Indulias Special**

This is a personally recipe of mine, one of many, and I felt that in the spirit of the holiday I would share it with you all. I developed this a couple of years ago, and everyone I have made it is always asking me when I'm making it again. It's actual name is "my full name Special" but since I am not using my full name on here "Zaion Indulias Special" is as good a name as any other. I hope that any of you who decide to make it will enjoy it, and that you will drop me a line and tell me what you think.

Jaa ne

-ZI

+Ingredients

-1 Box of Betty Crocker German Chocolate Cake Mix

-2 Containers of Betty Crocker Coconut Pecan Frosting

-1 1/3 Cups of Water

-1/2 Cup of Vegetable Oil (I recommend Canola)

-3 Eggs (I recommend large organic if you have the option)

-2 9-inch cake pans (best if you can finds one with the metal bar that helps cut the cake out from the underside)

-Raspberries

-Raspberry Jelly

-Flour

+Recipe

1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees farenheight.

2) Mix your cake mix, eggs, water, and oil in a large metal bowl as per the back of the box.

3) Take a paper towel and coat the inside of both pans with a small amount of oil. Add about two tablespoons of flour to both pans and shake over a sink to coat the entire inside, both the bottom and the sides. This will make it easier to remove and makes it cook better.

4) Pour half of the cake mix into each pan. When the oven has finished preheating place both pans in the middle of the oven.

5) Set your timer for 29 minutes. When the timer goes off check on the cakes. If you can dent them but the dent disappears then they are done. If the dent remains visible for more than a second or two after removing your finger then put it back in the oven and check it again in 2-3 minutes. Let cool for about half an hour on a rack before moving on to step 6. Do NOT set them on the counter top unless you have a heat resistant one specifically designed for placing hot pans on it.

6) Take two large plates and remove the cakes from the pans. Place each one face down on a separate plate, centered. This is best achieved if you have the sort of pan I advised by using the bar to separate the cake from the bottom and sides and then placing the plate face down over the cake, holding firmly, and flipping them both over.

7) Take one can of the frosting and (now top due to orientation) of one of the cakes. Only do this to one.

8) Once the coating of the top is finished add raspberries in concentric rings, pressed down into the frosting.

9) Fill in the space between the raspberries with raspberry jelly. I prefer to use my aunt's home made stuff, but a good brand of store bought jelly should work just as well. Make sure to completely fill the gaps and even cover the raspberries just slightly.

10) Take the second cake and carefully flip it until its base is right on top of the first cake. Set it down carefully on top, as you don't want to have to adjust it.

11) Use the remains of the first can and coat the top of this second cake and begin coating the sides. You WILL need the second can for the sides, and there is more than enough frosting between both cans. You will end with approximately half a can of extra frosting unless you overload it. I personally snack on that afterwards since it's just going to waste.

12) Place your left over raspberries on the surface in any design or pattern that you deserve.

13) Slice, serve, and enjoy.

**Phoenix Rising Omake #3: Kamina Logic**

"Begin" Genma said, and the battle was joined. Hinata and Neji rushed one another and began an eerie dance of feints, dodges, and strikes. The two Jyuuken users circled one another as they both strived to gain a crippling blow.

After nearly a minute of fighting, wherein neither managed to land anything more than a glancing blow with their Jyuuken strikes, Neji managed to catch Hinata in the side, causing her to fall back clutching at her side. Neji paused for a moment and smirked.

"I already told you, Destiny has decreed that you are weaker and that you shall fall to me, and so it shall be. Nothing you do can change that."

Hinata practically growled at her cousin and brought her hands together to perform a series of hand seals. Neji's smirk vanished momentarily as he was forced to dodge as a ball of lightning shot past him, narrowly missing his head. Neji glared at Hinata and took to the offensive again, pushing the advantage against his weakened opponent. In the balcony above Naruto realized that Hinata's confidence seemed to be failing after she received that first blow.

"Come on Hinata, you can do it!! Don't believe in yourself! Believe in me who believes in you!!"

The room suddenly became quiet enough to hear a pin drop as everyone around the room sweat dropped, even Lee. Hinata groaned in embarrassment.

_That's the last time I let Naruto watch anime_. She swore to herself before returning to her fight with Neji.

Neji was so shocked by the stupidity of his cousin's boyfriend that he never saw the blow coming until it was too late. Hinata had flipped into a spin as her fist made its way into Neji's face, causing it to become vaguely like a drill. Neji woke up three days later with a scratched face, a broken nose, and a very damaged ego.

He hadn't been beaten by a stronger opponent. He hadn't been beaten by luck. He hadn't even been beaten by a far weaker opponent. No, Neji had been beaten by one thing, and he burned with shame because of it.

Hyuuga Neji had been beaten by god damn Kamina and his god damn idiot logic, and Neji swore that as soon as he got free he would wipe all record of that man from existence. When he was released from the hospital a week later most of the orderlies were scared, as Neji had a creepy look on his face, a maniacal laugh, and kept muttering under his breath about "burning all the copies."

At this point I feel it is necessary to remind the reader that Hyuuga Neji was never really all there, and this latest defeat at the hand of an imaginary person had merely pushed him over the edge. I mean, come on, how far gone do you have to be to blame an anime character that someone quoted for you losing a fight?

That night, no copy of the great work that was "Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann" was safe from what would become known as "The Great Neji Psychotic Break".

**Techniques** - …I forgot what I was going to say here today.

**Akuma no Arashi no Jutsu**--_Devil's Storm Technique/_ Sora's special combination of a clan secret fire technique with a storage scroll kunai attack. The scrolls used in this are painstakingly hard to make, and are consumed within the fire of their release. (C-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Clan)

**Kussetsukinzoku: Senya no Jutsu**--_Bending Metal: Thousand Arrow Technique/_ This technique controls a thousand kunai or other metal spikes that Sora has charged with his + type chakra and direct them towards an object possessing his – type chakra. Normally this is a metal rod or ring he has attached to an enemy during the battle. In the case of Akadou Yoroi, he purposefully allowed the Konoha shinobi to drain enough of his chakra to force the man's entire body to become a target. The results were not pretty. (A-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)

**Mizutama no Jutsu**--_Water Sphere Technique/_ This technique uses a special storage scroll containing water to release a high quantity of water into a chakra-maintained sphere around the user. This sphere is capable of slowing incoming projectiles and blows, as well as outright blocking most Katon, Raiton, Suiton, and Fuuton techniques, although the power of such techniques that can be blocked depends on the mastery of the technique. To members of the Domonami Clan, this is a typical beginners jutsu for preparing more advanced clan abilities. It requires fair amount of chakra and control, and is considered a B-Class ninjutsu once mastered. (C/B-Class Ninjutsu) (Domonami Ren)

**Yami Akuma no Koukyo**--_Dark Demon's Demise/_ A technique used by Kabatsu Sora. Primes a battlefield so that the souls of the damned may be judged upon their deaths. Those that are judged worthy are sent to Heaven. Those that fail to past muster are fed to the Shinigami. This technique has no effects other than on the dead souls of those who die in battle there, but Sora's sword is unusable while this technique is active. (S-Class Kinjutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)

**Review Responses** – Last but certainly not least.

Moonfal – Hehe, Kuraikage no aru Yoru is even more "OH SH*T!" when you know what it really is and where the power comes from. I hope you enjoyed these fights, all hints to various characters aside, and that you enjoyed where I'm taking certain characters' relationships. Needless to say, I think I indavertantly gave Sora ANOTHER groupie. I actually had forgotten TenTen was still present when I wrote the draft of the fight, and when I realized that oversight I had to go back in and change a few things appropriately. Kussetsukinzoku: Senya no Jutsu is just evil after all, as it is a death technique, nothing less. As always, it is a pleasure to read your reviews.

Jaa ne.

-ZI

foreverbobae – Hehe, why thank you. Hope you enjoyed this chapter's omake as well.

Knives91 – Hehe, why thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and the serious beat down delivered to several people.

Samueltm2 – Why thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, especially the fight scenes.

Rasendori – The graduation age for the academy has been changed to 16 for the purposes of this AU story. Nuff said.


	23. Chapter 23: The Final Four

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its component characters. trademarks, etc. Nor do I own any of the other works that are crossed or referenced in this story, either explicitly or implicitly stated to be such works. This includes, but is not limited to, Avatar, X-men, and Magic the Gathering. This story is the first part in a three story arc involving a multiverse. The entire three part story is hereby known as "The Phoenix."

**Warning: This chapter contains content of an adult nature. If you are uncomfortable with this please PM me and I will personally deliver to you a clean copy lacking the offensive parts.**

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* * *

  
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Chapter 23: The Final Four

Sabaku no Temari

VS

Kinuta Dosu

Temari smirked over her crossed arms as Dosu sent her a baleful look before turning and leaping over the railing, landing lightly on the ground below. Dosu, not to be out done by his opponent, followed her down, flipping and spinning in the air to land on his feet facing her, on the opposite side of Genma.

"Ok, now, remember the ru-"

"Just get on with it." Dosu snapped, still glaring straight at Temari.

His blond opponent was smirking, but those familiar with her would have noted the slight changes she made to her stance. It fooled the opponent into thinking that she was unprepared to attack or defend when the reality was far, far different.

"Very well. Match 10, begin." Genma said, leaping back out of the way.

Dosu was already moving, rushing straight towards Temari with his right arm cocked back and ready to strike. The blond merely smirked, remaining with her arms crossed and narrowed eyes until it was clear to everyone that she would never be able to draw the massive fan on her back in time.

FWHOOSH!

There were gasps of surprise as Temari's arms lashed out, two small fans held in her hands. The small ripples of wind were small in size, but carried enough force that Dosu barely had time for his eyes to widen before the blasts knocked him flying backwards towards the other wall. He tried to flip so that he would land with his feet against the wall, but just as he got his feet into the air over his head he heard a high pitched whistling sound.

THUD THUD

A pair of closed fans slammed into his clothes and pinned him face first against the wall.

Dosu Kinuta, recently of Otogakure no Sato, didn't stand a chance as gale force winds slammed into him, bashing him continuously against the wall until he collapsed into unconsciousness.

Temari smirked and closed the massive battlefan that she had removed from her back, spinning it around and back up where it hooked back into the harness on her back. She didn't even wait for the confirmation of her victory before she turned and began to walk back up to rejoin her brothers. As she turned back towards her side of the room she noticed that Sora,

_God he's so fucking sexy in that armor!_

was watching her intently, a faint smile and an appraising look on his face. When she met his eyes she shuddered slightly, both from fear and exhilaration. Sora's eyes were nearly pitch black, with a red ring and spinning blue triangles. They simultaneously struck fear into her heart, and aroused her at a primal level. Shivering, Temari hurried up the steps and rejoined her teammates, attempting to drive the memory of Sora's eyes from her mind. This was not the time to be getting wet.

As Temari reached her teammates and leant against the railing Sora turned his head slowly to look up at the giant board, awaiting the announcement of the next match. There were only six combatants remaining, only two of which held any interest for him. The others were all considered nobodies by his mother and intel on them would only be important for the purpose of defeating the winners during the finals.

BEEP

The board lit up again and displayed the next match. Sora smirked slightly as name of one of the few remaining shinobi who aroused his interest appeared on the board.

Nara Shikamaru

VS

Misumi Tsurugi

Sora was quite curious to see what the clearly intelligent Konoha genin could do. Sora hadn't missed Shikamaru's open shock and interest when Tsubaki had unveiled her abilities during the first match, and like any red-blooded male he wanted to be fully aware of the potential of any competition.

Not that Sora was actually worried about anyone ever taking Tsubaki's interest away from him. He just didn't trust any of these Konoha shinobi yet. Even if his mother and the Ryuukage DID have an interest in keeping the village intact he still suspected them of all being devious bastards. They _were_ shinobi after all, it's what they do.

* * *

The remaining Konoha shinobi smirked or chuckled lightly as they heard the predicted "troublesome" escape from Shikamaru's lips as he turned and slunk towards the ground floor with his hands in his pockets. To those who knew the lazy boy of course, the look in his eyes was cold and calculating as he appraised the older Konoha shinobi, who lie his teammate covered most of his mask with his face.

As the pair faced off across from Genma Shikamaru frowned and narrowed his eyes, watching Misumi's almost lackadaisical stance.

"We will now begin the match." Genma said loudly, leaping back to avoid being caught in the storm of fighting he had clearly been expecting. He was surprised when he finally realized that neither combatant had moved.

"Unlike Yoroi, even against little punks like you, I show no mercy. I'll say it now, if I put my techniques on you, the match is over. Give up immediately." Misumi said with all seriousness, his eyes narrowing behind his glasses. "I'm going to end this quickly."

Shikamaru frowned and then suddenly flipped his hands out, launching a brace of kunai at his opponent as he brought his hands together and performed a series of hand seals he knew so well he could do it in his sleep.

_I'm going to win this. I need to get the chance to impress that shadow user chick. Troublesome as those will be to do._

Misumi, surprised by such a forward assault, dodged to the side in a roll and then sprinted straight towards Shikamaru, who never took his focus off his hand seals or where his opponent had been standing. He launched a punch towards Shikamaru's arms, slightly surprised that the boy seemed to continue to remain focused on a point in front of him, and at the last second began to twist his body. Within moments and to cries of surprise from the balconies, Misumi Tsurugi had wrapped him self around Shikamaru, completely immobilizing the younger genin He had even managed to separate Shikamaru's hands, ending whatever jutsu the younger boy had been attempting..

"This is your last chance. Give up or you die." Misumi said as he tightened his grip.

Shikamaru looked appropriately shocked for a brief moment before he grinned and began speaking, drawing Misumi's attention towards his head. In the balconies above everyone remained silent as they saw Shikamaru continue forming one-handed seals, much to their shock.

Sora narrowed his eyes.

_If Shikamaru can perform one-handed seals then he could be more of a threat than I thought. Tsubaki has been trying to learn to do that with her shadow abilities for years_.

It's not like he was worried or anything.

"Kagemane no Jutsu."

Suddenly Misumi ceased tightening his body around Shikamaru, his eyes widening.

"What the hell?" Misumi got out before Shikamaru spoke again.

"Kage Kubi Shibari no Jutsu."

Misumi began to groan as the shadows that seemed to be holding him glued in place began to reach up his body like a pair of hands, tightening around him as they reached for his neck.

"I believe it is you who should give up." Shikamaru said laconically as he focused all of his attention on his jutsu.

"I'll never give up to a whelp like you." Misumi managed to grunt as the hands closed around his neck and began to constrict.

And that was all she wrote. Misumi maintained consciousness for a surprising three minutes before the lack of oxygen caused him to collapse unconscious, his arms releasing from around Shikamaru as his body slumped to the ground. Shikamaru smirked and stepped away from his unconscious opponent as Genma stepped forward to confirm the victory. Sensing eyes upon him Shikamaru looked up and straight into the eyes of Kabatsu Sora, which were black with blue and red markings. Shikamaru did his best to smirk confidently at the mysterious foreign genin, even as his mind raced to figure out what was up with his eyes. It wasn't any doujutsu he had ever heard about, so it must be a genjutsu. But why would the young man be trying to intimidate him, unless…

_Ah, he must consider my skill with the shadows a threat, possibly to his relationship with that girl Tsubaki. Interesting._

It was several minutes later, as the next match finished, that Shikamaru would suddenly blanch and realize that he had neglected to use his favorite phrase.

* * *

"Report on the final two matches later. I'm going to go keep Tsubaki company." Sora said calmly as his eyes ceased spiraling and reverted to their normal heterochromatic state.

Tenten Kuroda

VS

Abumi Zaku

Sora barely caught the names on the bored as he had turned and followed the so-named Oto-nin Zaku down the steps. He noticed some of the proctors eyeing him warily before he headed straight for the doors leading towards the infirmary, at which point they all relaxed. Those who had been watching his interaction with Tsubaki earlier simply assumed that he was going to be by her side. As he exited the room Sora didn't notice the look Shikamaru was sending him. If he had, he might have been a bit overprotective over the next month.

Sora walked down the long hallway, following the marked signs towards the infirmary. When he entered he found several of those who had lost their matches sitting on benches along the waiting room. They looked up when he entered, but most returned to looking at their feet or wringing their hands as soon as they saw who it was.

Ino stood hesitantly, then resolved her self and stepped forward with a bit more confidence.

"Um, excuse me. Kabatsu-san?" She asked.

Sora paused and favored her with a calm look and a faint smile, relaxing he nervous blond.

"Um, none of the others here in the hall were able to witness Naruto's match. Has he fought yet?"

Sora nodded and smiled slightly more. "He won his match against Shino handily."

Ino let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding in relief and smiled faintly before hobbling back to her seat. Her injuries had been fairly mild, but she was still suffering from a mild concussion and her balance was all shot to hell. Sora merely smiled faintly and stepped up to the attendants standing beside the doors into the deeper part of the infirmary.

"How is Shinomori Tsubaki doing?" He asked his voice calm and steady, with just a hint of command in it.

One of the two attendants, who obviously had a problem with the younger Nagareboshi genin, merely sneered at him. The other shot his partner a glare before smiling faintly as Sora and saying that he would check and disappearing through the doors. Rather than take a seat as the first attendant arrogantly suggested he do, Sora remained standing where he was, sharing a cold look with the attendant.

_I swear, if it wasn't for mother vouching for this village I would kill every last fucker who looked at me wrong. I swear, for the way they treat those who keep the darkness away, most of these fuckers deserve far worse._

_**Patience, Brat. There will be enough blood from those who are truly our enemies. I've only just gotten used to our partnership, and I don't want to have to break a new host in because some damn fool village we aggravated got lucky.**_

Sora's discussion with his inner demon was interrupted by the second attendant returning.

"Miss Tsubaki is in stable condition and conscious. If you would, please follow me?" The young man motioned and Sora nodded politely before following silently.

The young medic-nin led him down the hallway and into a brightly lit room. There were three beds in the room, though only one was currently occupied. A heavily bandaged Shinomori Tsubaki looked up at their entrance and the sad frown on her face was suddenly replaced with a bright smile. It took all her will power not to leap out of the bed, cast and bandages included, and slam her arms around Sora.

"Sora!!"

Sora smiled and approached quickly taking a seat beside Tsubaki and reaching out one hand to stroke her exposed cheek softly.

"How are you doing, Camellia?" Sora asked with a smile as the petite kunoichi mock frowned up at him before closing her eyes and smiling.

Sora remained there quietly as Tsubaki rubbed her cheek against his hand, which was spectacularly smooth for a shinobi. She had long ago accepted that Sora's abilities made him immune to any sign of long term injury, including scars and callouses, and had simply come to accept that her lover would always have such amazingly smooth and warm skin. She, like most of the shinobi corps of Nagareboshigakure no Sato, knew the reason that Sora and those like him always seemed to be warmer than normal, no matter what the weather was, and she, again like most of the shinobi corps of Nagareboshigakure, felt not fear of that reason.

"So." She finally asked softly. "Should I take you being here to mean that the rest of the matches are over?"

Sora shook his head.

"No, there are two left. I should be getting back soon, but I wanted to check on you to make sure you were doing alright." He said softly.

Sora leant his head down and kissed Tsubaki softly on the lips.

"You are more important to me than the exams." He said softly as he gazed into her eyes, losing himself in the magnificent pits of blackness. Tsubaki in turn was losing her self in Sora's eyes, one burning like the raging inferno at the heart of the sun, the other cold as the depths of space, but both still filled with his love for her.

Tsubaki leant her head up and kisses Sora again, both closing their eyes as they held the kiss for a few moments. Finally Tsubaki broke the kiss and rested her head back on her pillow again.

"Now go, Sora. You need to be there for the end of the matches. You need to be able to see what the match-ups for the finals will be." Tsubaki said as her exhaustion overtook her. Fighting Sasuke had taken a lot out of her, particularly after he had activated that strange seal.

"Ok my love. Sleep well. I shall return as soon as I can." Sora said with a faint smile as he stood back up, his hand stroking across her cheek one last time before he turned and exited the room.

As the attendant led him out of the infirmary Sora clenched his fists, his eyes narrowed and his face a momentary rictus of fury.

_Uchiha Sasuke is a dead man. I don't give a damn about the treaty mother is after, if he so much as looks at me wrong I'll slice his dick off and feed it to him raw._

The only response in his mind was a deep bass laughter that would have scared anyone else who heard it.

* * *

Sora returned to the main hall just in time to witness that pathetic Haruno chick that Ren for some strange reason found attractive be struck down by a blow from Sabaku no Kankurou. He had passed the unconscious figure of Tenten being carried to the Infirmary on a stretcher, so he knew that that meant that Zaku had won.

As Sora stepped forward, his teammates sharing brief nods with him, Genma stepped forward to the center of the room and began to speak loudly after clearing his throat.

"Well, with this, the preliminary trials for the round three test have been completed.!!"

Genma remained quiet as the proctors for the previous exams and the Hokage walked slowly to the ground floor to line up before the statue again, facing a single line of the surviving genin. Twelve of the thirteen genin who had passed the exams stood in a row, all with intense looks on their faces.

"To all of you who won the right to compete in the 'third round test' of the chuunin exam, congratulations to you all!!"

Despite being focused on Genma and the other proctors Sora noted when Hatake Kakashi vanished in a puff of smoke. He returned his focus to those before him.

Meanwhile the Sandaime Hokage was going over the list of victors in his mind.

_Including Uchiha Sasuke, who isn't here right now, there's five from Konoha, four from Nagareboshi, three from Suna, and one from Oto._ _This will be quite an interesting exam indeed._

"Hokage-sama, if you would please?" Genma asked, turning towards the white-robed leader.

Sarutobi smiled and adjusted his hat.

"Well, now I'd like to start explaining the main test." He began as he removed his pipe from his mouth. "As I told you before, in the main vent your matches will be seen by everybody. Each of you will fight to represent the strengths of your countries. I'd like you to show off all your powers with no reserves. Which is why the finals will be held one month from now."

Sarutobi paused as he watched the looks of surprise that flickered across the faces of the gathered genin. He noted with interest that not a single one of the Nagareboshi genin so much as twitched a muscle at his announcement. It was almost as if they had known wha to expect. No matter, it was entirely conceivable that they had all watched or partaken in a previous Chunin Exam held in another of the five primary villages.

"This break, you can say, will be for preparations." He continued after waiting another moment.

"What does that mean?" Hyuuga Neji asked with his standard glower upon his face.

"In other words, in addition to informing all the various Country lords and shinobi leaders, this is the time needed to arrange for the gathering of the event, and this is also the preparation time for you examination students."

"I don't understand what you're trying to say! What does that mean?" Kankuro asked harshly. Nearby Kabatsu Sora and Domonami Ren both smirked.

"Basically, it's the preparation to get to know your enemy and your self. It's the time period where you will calculate your chances of winning by analyzing the data you accumulated during the trial competition. The battles up to now had you fight as if you were in an actual combat situation with the assumption of fighting an unknown opponent."

_That's for sure!_ Shikamaru thought petulantly. _I'd never have imagined that I would encounter a shadow user not from Konoha_.

"However, the final trial will not be like this. There are those who showed all that they can do already to their rivals, there are those who competed and were badly injured against a strong opponent, and there were those who managed to hide the full extent of their abilities. To make everything fair, the one month should be used by all of you to advance and improve yourselves. Of course, it'll be fine to rest your body as well."

Sarutobi ceased speaking as around the chamber the twelve genin were showing a range of emotions upon their faces.

Naruto had a grim determined set to his jaw, his eyes narrowed.

_I can do this. One month? I just need to find someone to help me train. I'm sure Gai will be busy training Lee, so he's out. Kurenai is a great instructor, but she won't be able to teach me any high level power techniques in time. Maybe Jiraiya can assist, or Anko. They both surely have stuff they can teach me._

_**Don't forget Kit, we must continue work on your other training as well, if you wish to be able to handle my power.**_

Naruto nodded silently.

_Yes, there is that as well. I must win, for the Himes' sakes._

* * *

The only sound in the large hospital room as Kabuto quietly walked towards the lone bed was the beeping of the machines assisting Sasuke in remaining alive. On the floor behind him lay the three deceased bodies of the ANBU members he had killed as he had entered the room.

"Sigh…there's such a thing as being too outstanding. We stood out too much, and we were both unfortunate to catch the eye of Orochimaru-sama."

Kabuto stood over Sasuke, memories floating through his mind. Slowly he drew a scalpel and began to reach toward Sasuke, preparing to sever the oxygen tubes running to his mask. Just as he was about to slice he suddenly twisted his hand and flicked the scalpel under his arm pit. It was caught by Hatake Kakashi a mere inch from his eyes.

"Just what I'd expect of you, Kakashi-san. To stop my attack on you from your blind spot."

"You…you're no ordinary genin, are you…? Noticing my presence and immediately attacking with your weapon, you're quite the guy." Kakashi said as he observed Kabuto, his back still turned towards the older shinobi.

"Nah, not really." Kabuto replied.

"What did you want with Sasuke? Depending on what you want and intend…I'll have to capture you and have you interrogated."

"Can that be done…?" Kabuto asked as he turned, his eyes nearly manic. "By the likes of you?"

The two silver haired shinobi faced off in the room, completely unaware of a black cloaked figure hiding on the wall just outside and below the windows.

"Who the hell are you? You… weren't you the son of a leaf ninja doctor…wasn't your name Kabuto, a bottom-feeding, no-good ninja?"

Kabuto remained silent for a moment before replying mockingly. "Next time, you better prepare at least ten."

"Just shut up and answer the questions."

Their little power struggled continued for another minute before Kabuto made a play for freedom. Unfortunately for the silver-haired traitor, an unexpected element was about to be thrown into the mix.

"Kaen Shimekukuru no Jutsu!" A female voice called out just as Kabuto, disguised in the uniform of an ANBU, was about to leap from the window he had just shattered.

Much to Kakashi's surprise six burning-red chains shot up through the window and wrapped themselves around Kabuto, causing the medic-nin to scream out in pain as the bands on the ends of the chains latched onto his limbs and his neck. Thinking fast Kakashi leapt forward and struck the back of Kabuto's neck, dropping the unfortunate genin into unconsciousness.

Kakashi was relieved to see the bands immediately cease to glow the moment Kabuto lost consciousness, although the chains continued to wrap and securely bind the downed shinobi. Going to the window and leaning out, Kakashi witnessed a clearly female figure standing straight out from the surface a bare six feet below the edge of the window. A black cloak dangled below the figure, who was wearing black and red armor that covered most of her body and a mask over her face. The mask depicted a roaring blue fire, and her long black hair dangled freely from underneath it. There were no further markings on the mask, but the figure's armor bore two distinct sigils.

The first was a sigil of an eight pointed star on the left of the chest, emblazoned in gold. The second was a symbol of a pure blue flame upon the right chest. Kakashi could swear he could feel the figure smirking at him from behind her mask as she crossed her arms.

"Consider this assistance a freebie, Hatake Kakashi of Konoha. Give this message to your Hokage."

Kakashi's hand blurred, stopping the object the figure had flung towards his face. He found that it was a message cylinder, nondescript except for a tiny eight pointed star on one end.

"See ya around, Sharingan Kakashi." The figure said again before pushing off from the wall and flipping into the air.

Kakashi watched as she plummeted towards the ground momentarily before spinning again and vanishing in a flash of blue flame. Kakashi sighed and stood back up, lifting the unconscious and bound body of Kabuto and exiting the room to carry the traitor to Ibiki.

* * *

In a small chamber hidden in the back of Hikaru's, Kabatsu Cora smirked as she looked up from her crystal ball. Flare had succeeded in capturing one of the spies serving the Snake and the Traitor. This was good. This was very good indeed.

* * *

"Well, I'd like to dismiss you now, but there's something that has to be done before I can do that. There are thirteen balls inside of the box that Anko's holding so each of you take one piece." The Hokage said as Anko stepped forward carrying the box.

"I'll come around, so wait your turn!" Anko said.

Everyone waited patiently as Anko walked down the line, each of them taking a ball until finally Sora, standing at the far end, had drawn his, leaving one remaining ball in the box.

"All right, you all took a piece. Now then, I'd like you to tell us the number on that paper in order, starting from the left." The Hokage said.

One by one the genin gave their numbers. Lee had number 2. Naruto had number 8. Shikamaru had number 4. Neji was 1. Kankuro was 5. Gaara had 10. Temari had 13. Zaku received 11. Nobu had number 7. Akane had 6. Ren had 12. And Sora had 9. This left Sasuke, the only one not present to draw his number, with 3 by default.

"Alright, now I will reveal to you the final tournament!!" The Hokage announced. "Now Ibiki, show them the match arrangements."

Everyone watched intently as Ibiki held up a clipboard, displaying the matches as had been arranged by the random draw.

1Neji--------8Naruto

2Lee---------9Sora

3Sasuke-----10Gaara

4Shikamaru-11Zaku

5Kankuro----12Ren

6Akane-------13Temari

7Nobu

"As there are an uneven number of opponents, Ameshira Nobu receives a buy in the tournament. He will face the winner of the sixth match before the second round of the tournament proceeds." Ibiki said.

As it sank in the Hokage stepped forward and continued speaking.

"Well then, you're all free to start strategizing or resting as you like. With this I'll dismiss you all, but are there any final questions?"

Predictably, Shikamaru raised his hand. "Can I ask a question?"

When he received an affirmative from the Hokage Shikamaru continued. "Since it's a tournament, it would mean that there's only one winner, right…? Which would mean that only one person can become a Chunin doesn't it?"

Sarutobi chuckled. "No! That's not quite it. There will be judges, including myself, the Kazekage, lords of various countries that will make the mission requests, and other shinobi leaders, who will be watching the final test. Throughout the tournament, these judges will be evaluating your abilities. Those judged to have the necessary qualities of a Chunin will be able to become a Chunin even if they lose their first match."

"That means that it's a possibility that everyone here will become Chunin?" Temari asked.

"Yes." The Hokage replied seriously. "But also the possibility that no one will become a Chunin! To advance in the tournament means that you will have more chances to appeal to the judges. Did you understand, Shikamaru?"

Shikamaru frowned.

_How troublesome._

"Well then, thanks for all the effort you exerted for these trials! You're all dismissed until a month from now!"

Sarutobi's eyes narrowed as the genin began to exit the room, following their Jounin instructors. He had just been informed over the concealed communicator attached to his ear that Hatake Kakashi had just shown up carrying a burnt and bound prisoner. This was definitely not good.

* * *

As the members of the Nagareboshi contingent arrived back to their lodgings in Konoha six hours later, a heavily bandaged but otherwise alright Tsubaki being carried by Sora, they all had their eyes open for any possible threat. A tiny hawk had shown up shortly after they had left the tower in the Forest of Death, escorted by several teams of Konoha shinobi, and had delivered a message discreetly to Sora.

"Flare has taken the Medic out of the equation. Keep your guard up. Training will begin in three days."

The simple, cryptic message was accompanied by the sigil of a dragon bursting forth from an erupting volcano.

Because there had been four girls and four guys betwixt the two teams they had rented four rooms and split off into pairs.

Or rather, because Ren put up with Sora and Tsubaki going at it like rabbits she had volunteered to room with the couple, thus leaving Akane and her sensei Tomoko to share one room, Arashi and Nobu to share one, and leaving Kakkojimen Isamu alone in his own room. Given his proclivities during his down time, no one complained about the turtle Jounin having his own room.

As Sora laid Tsubaki down upon her bed and kissed her softly Ren collapsed boneless onto her own bed, reveling in the comfort of clean blankets and clean sheets. As she happily curled up in her bed after quickly shucking most of her clothes she quickly fell asleep, ignoring the gentle mewling sounds coming from the next bed as Sora, being careful to handle Tsubaki with care and avoiding her injuries, began to please his lover, intent on fully making up for their lack of time together over the past week.

From the halting gasps and gentle cries Tsubaki was releasing, it would have been clear to any observer that Tsubaki was quite pleased to be receiving Sora's ministrations.

* * *

Meanwhile in an apartment on the other side of Konoha a pair of blond genin were carefully helping their partner to the bed, settling Hinata carefully into the large bed that the three of them shared most days. Naruto and Ino both kisses Hinata softly, wishing her sweet dreams as the exhausted girl dropped into blissful unconsciousness. Her injuries had been intense, but she would recover on her own as long as she had plenty of rest, and her two lovers to look after her.

Closing the door silently behind them, Ino and Naruto exited the bedroom, heading for the couch. By the time they reached it both of them had tossed off their clothes and Ino pushed hard against Naruto's chest, causing him to fall over backwards onto the couch. Ino grinned like the vixen she was and leapt, pouncing on her lover and wriggling her body all along his body, causing Naruto to groan and shudder in response to the pleasure.

Ino giggled at her lover's response and began to kiss and lick slowly down his body until her hands were grasping hold of his penis, holding it tightly before her face. She breathed in his scent deeply before grinning up at Naruto's face, which was trapped in a rictus of pleasure. Silently, still keeping eye contact with her lover, she opened her mouth and lowered it slowly, taking her boyfriend's hardened love-rod into her mouth.

Naruto practically yelled out in pleasure as Ino's teeth brushed against the sensitive head of his cock.

Ino grinned as she began to slowly suck on her boyfriend's dick, eliciting even louder groans of pleasure from the blond boy.

Even with a tournament to prepare for, it would be two days before anyone other than Hinata would see the pair.

* * *

Outside the atmosphere of the planet space warped and shifted momentarily before settling back down. Out of the distortion had flown a sleek craft, elegant and deadly. It was approximately a hundred meters in length, flanked by two sleek engine pods and numerous ovoid emplacements upon its surface. Its surface was a glimmering gold that seemed to flow along the entire length, rippling in subtle waves. From one such emplacement a portal opened and a sleek golden pod, approximately six meters in length, launched forth, barreling straight into the atmosphere.

As the pod descended through the atmosphere in a burning blaze of glory the massive golden cruiser pulled away from the planet and accelerated. A moment later there was a second warping of space and the cruiser was once again gone, leaving space around the primitive world once again empty of any foreign material.

* * *

As the pod dropped into the lower layers of the atmosphere the outer layers began to flow and shift, forming a flattened arrowhead shape with a curved, raised center and backswept tips. Under a means of propulsion not immediately visible the object slowed its descent, extinguishing the flames roiling across its surface as it disappeared in a rolling shimmer of light. Slowly, Operative Gamma-Three-Seven of the Royal Expeditionary Force began scanning the Class Three world it had been deployed on, analyzing tactical capability and searching for any sign of the Infection.

* * *

AN: Hey all, sorry it's been a while, but I've been crazy busy what with trying to find a job, and when I haven't been busy with that I've been depressed due to my failure to succeed in doing so. I'll likely remain busy the rest of the month, but my hecticness will hopefully settle down, one way or another, by January. Please, everyone wish me luck in finding a job, as I really don't want to have to move back home in January, because there is this absolutely amazing girl up here who I want to get to know better, and having to move back home will put a major crimp in my plans.

Now, onto the chapter. I chose to skip the last two matches as they don't have much bearing on the story, and would have been boring to write. I much preferred the little interlude between Sora and Tsubaki, didn't you? I also decided that despite being Mr. Lazybones, that Shikamaru should be just a tad bit more skilled after three years as a student, and I've chosen for him to have learned to perform a technique or two at least using paired single-hand signs. Obviously this was still more difficult for him, and required more chakra and concentration than it would otherwise have.

The two scenes between the lovers at the end were necessary, although I could have left a little bit out. I chose to put it fully though because I give fair warning at the start. I've rated the fic Mature from the beginning for a reason, and I also have it fully backed up in the event that someone decides to be a dick and report it for this tiny bit of action. I don't live with the belief that things like this would not happen, nor do I believe in simply skipping around them, at least not fully.

As to the final scene, before anyone freaks out, this is tied into the massive multiverse within which this story exists. The bearing of this scene is on future stories that may or may not tie severely into this AU of Naruto's world, but I promise that it will have no effect on the actual plot of "The Phoenix". I am merely setting up connections with this world, ones that will be important in a year or two to other stories that I intend to write.

Please remember to read and review, as it always cheers me up when I'm in a slump, and it lets me know what you think. Next time, on "Phoenix Rising", Chapter 24: The Month of Hell.

**Notice: Omake Contest**

Now, there are various scenes that I've considered trying to write, but they would not only be too difficult, but sometimes I just don't have the creativity to handle these side scenes. So here is the challenge. Attempt to write a scene of either Shikamaru or Kiba after they return home, relating their experience during the preliminaries to their family, notably their interest in certain notable Nagareboshi kunoichi. I will choose the best ones, that are most to the style of the story as I have written it, to place with proper credit due at the end of Chapter 25 or 26. If you have any questions about either of the Nagareboshi genin that you would like answered to assist you in your writing, do not hesitate to pm me with them. I will get back to you asafp. Now, I bid you adieu, and I hope that at least some of you will accept this challenge and attempt to create a masterpiece.

Jaa ne.

-Zaion Indulias

**Technique List** – Haven't written this for a while

**Kaen Shimekukuru no Jutsu**--_Flame Binding Technique/_ The user launches coiling, red-hot chains of metal to entrap a target. The extreme pain from the burning chains helps disable a target. This technique requires great concentration and skill with controlling fire chakra, as well as a willingness to cause pain to the target. (B-Class Ninjutsu)

**Review Responses** – Long time no chat people.

Moonfal – Ah, my ever faithful follower. How good it is to hear from you again. What news do you bring today? Have any of your roommates/floormates cracked up over my fics since last we spoke? (that always makes me laugh myself) Anyways, yes, Yami Akuma no Koukyo is just evil. And it really is an intimidation tactic. It affects the battle in no way directly, but as long as it is in effect any who die within its influence are fed to the Shinigami. It's quite an insult to do that to your dead foe after all. As for Kussetsukinzoku: Senya no Jutsu, it was one of three techniques I decided to create as soon as I decided to put Kussetsukinzoku abilities into play. The first was already shown during Sora's first scene all those many chapters ago. As to Sora, yes, he is very badass, but there is a reason for it. For starters, due to circumstances mostly out of his control, he has not been able to take the Chunin exams yet, nor has he been eligible within his village for promotion through other pathways. Thus his standard abilities, without even drawing on what he contains (Which is NOT a Bijuu btw), are of high Chunin level at least, if not approaching Jounin. I will likely be writing the next chapters for Golden Viper, Legacy, and Guardians' Wyrd before I get around to chapter 24, but you never know. If the inspiration hits I don't ignore it, so it may get bumped up on the rotation.

Until next time, jaa ne watashi no tomodachi.

-ZI

Knives91 – Hehe, oh yes. Naruto is the pimp master. I mean, he has two absolutely drop dead sexy and sexual kunoichi basically hanging off his arms. Well, when one isn't unconscious from injuries and the other isn't going down on him that is.

Samueltm2 – Hehe, thank you. I'm sorry this was a little lax on the fighting scenes, but to try to force through two I really didn't want to write just would have been insulting to all of you.

RyouSeiryuu – Why thank you. I've worked hard to develop this AU, both within the confines of Naruto's world and without. I have a backstory for events in the Multiverse going back a thousand years, particularly those tied to Naruto's world, and it continues to grow. Sora is one of my favorite characters to write for the story, along with Naruto, Shikamaru, and Shino (even if the latter two are seen only occasionally). Sora is supposed to represent another pathway that a jinchuriki could have gone through. Naruto was isolated by his mother because of the hatred of the villagers. Gaara had family but was isolated and hated. But Sora, while orphaned shortly after birth, had a better life. He had a mother figure who raised and taught him, a village who looked upon him with respect for the duty he held, much as the Fourth had wished Konoha to view his son, and he had friends who trusted him and weren't afraid of what was inside of him.

Also, it's fun writing the sexual-sadism side of his and Tsubaki's personalities, which I hope this chapter has made clear is just one aspect of their relationship and their love for one another, because obviously Sora isn't causing her any pain in their last scene.

P.S. – Sasuke does suck. In this story he is just plain a villain. In Golden Viper he is a hero as far as Naruto is concerned, but Konoha will still see him as a villain. And in Legacy of the Planet he will be very much like canon Sasuke, with maybe one or two minor changes.

Foreverbobae – Haha, you and me both. That omake just wrote itself, and I couldn't stop laughing as I finalized the chapter for posting. Unfortunately no omake this time, but I try not to write them unless I have a really good idea for one. Sometimes I do have ideas, but I can't get the creativity flowing, thus why I decided to do the Omake Contest as stated above.

Thousand Tailed Holy FlashFang – hehe, capslock plus period break up of sentence. I must have made an impression to earn that emphasis. I hope you continue to like it, and I hope that you might deign to check out my other works as well.

Galidarion – Yeah well, Hinata was at a disadvantage, though she made a good showing of it. And if Neji hadn't been a genius like he was, she would likely have taken him down. After all, she really only needed a single lucky shot, though she would have used most of her chakra up in the technique. As to the jutsu, do you mean Senya or the Akuma jutsu? Akuma just created a field wherein one who died was eaten by the shinigami. Senya is intended to kill the target if they cannot escape or defend fully. It is literally, as the name means, a thousand arrows.

Sweet Heavens – Why thank you. As to answering your question, the answer is simple. They have. Obliquely, yes, but Sora and his teammates have made the first direct contact. On top of this, convenient agent in place Hikaru has been keeping an eye on Naruto since he was a child. But until Naruto actually wakens the power sleeping inside of him, Kabatsu Cora and her Pyromancers have no need to interfere. As to the other agents watching over people, they have assignments for different reasons.

Rain alchemist – Ah, good to hear from you again Mel. Well, there is a month of training coming up, which will be focused mostly on the training of certain Konoha genin, with occasional appearances by competitors, so Naruto will unveil some abilities there and during the final exam. Sora is extremely fun to write as, due to the nature of his existence, abilities, and powers, he is an extremely conflicted individual. He can be the most vicious person in the world one minute, and the most tender lover the next. As to Sakura's reaction, yeah, that was what I always imagined would happen if Sakura were to suddenly realize that another woman was interested in HER sexually. Haha. As to Naruto's fight against Neji, that is going to take so much work, but it will be so much fun. The fight I'm truly looking forward to is the fight between Sora and Rock Lee. I guarantee you that it is going to be EPIC. It has been in the works since around chapter 17 or 18, and is perhaps one of the two fights in Phoenix Rising that I am most looking forward to writing. And thank you, that omake was fun to write. I had been working on the original chapter after rewatching some of Gurren Lagann, and I just couldn't resist it.

Jaa ne.

-ZI

tiger982305 – Thank you. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if it was a bit quieter compared to the previous three.

Alec-potter – Well, while it is true that in golden Viper I could have placed almost any girl I chose with Naruto for the purpose of the story, there were several reasons I chose to have him involved with Sakura. Amongst them are reasons tied into my ultimate plan for the story, and how Team 7 in the story is supposed to be an almost reverse mirror of canon.

As to the OCs, I will gladly accept criticism, but not flames. As your review is proper criticism rather than a raving ranting flame, that means that it was a pleasure to receive. However, the OCs are not really turning the story away from the central character or the main plot, as up until this point very little of the main plot of "The Phoenix" has really been shown. The origins of events happening in the story now reach back a thousand years before, and now that some characters who will ultimately be major players (one who will ultimately stand side-by-side with Naruto during the final battle of the trilogy) I have been making an effort to showcase them and give my readers an idea about them. Since most of the other Konoha shinobi aren't drastically different from canon, I haven't wasted as much time on then.

The clan restoration laws were mentioned to explain Naruto's relationship with both girls, and why no one was looking upon him with distaste for doing such a thing. I honestly doubt that I will involve Naruto will become involved with anyone else, and I can guarantee if he does it will NOT be an OC. My decision to have some original characters interact with the OCs actually came after I designed them, and was a way to expand it, but Naruto with his two lovely ladies was practically set in stone from day one.

Anyways, thanks for the review, particularly since you cared enough to provide criticism on what you saw as flaws in the story.

Jaa ne.

-ZI

Duo's chibi Deathscythe – Well, there is a reason for a lot of that, and I stand by my decisions. As to the AU being truly alternative, well, if you knew what I had planned for the multiverse, and the events that have reverberated through time to affect Naruto's time, you would understand just how alternative it is. And I'm not always a huge fan of threesomes unless they have been developed well, but for this story it was just the way it worked right. And I tend to hate Sakura as well, which is why she basically gets a raw deal in Phoenix Rising and in Legacy of the Planet. Its also precisely the reason why her role is completely flipturned from canon in Golden Viper, as many aspects of that are designed to oppose their canon counterparts.

And I appreciate your thanks. It always warms an authors heart to know that his readers both enjoy his work, and appreciate that he has chosen to share it. I know people who write fanfics, but never share them with others. And that is sometimes a shame as sometimes they are quite good.

Jaa ne, Duo.

-ZI


	24. Chapter 24: The Month of Hell

**WARNING! WARNING! This chapter contains material of a graphic sexual nature. As it is not a singular segment per se I will gladly edit and provide a clean copy of this chapter to anyone who PMs me and requests it.**

Disclaimer: My usual disclaimer decided to take a holiday. I own nothing but my OCs.

* * *

Chapter 24: The Month of Hell

In a dark chamber in an unknown location Orochimaru growled in anger. Behind him a pair of his servants rushed to clean up the bloody mess that until just minutes before had been one of Orochimaru-sama's spies in Konoha. The man had met his very messy and very painful end after he had informed their Lord that Kabuto, one of his best spies and perhaps the best medic Konoha had seen since Tsunade (or at least he would have been had the fools had any idea how good he really was) had apparently been captured by Hatake Kakashi. In the corner of the room five figures watched silently.

"My Lord, do you wish for us to arrange for his extraction?" One of the figures in the corner of the room asked.

"No." Orochimaru replied after several long moments. "I want you to arrange for his execution."

The figure that had spoken nodded and then all five vanished in a shunshin. There was silence in the room as the servants left with the dead body of Orochimaru's now deceased spy. As soon as the door had closed Orochimaru heard a deep chuckle and a tall man, pale and with long silky cobalt-blue hair stepped out of the shadows in another corner of the room.

"Well, this is certainly a set-back, but not insurmountable. My only question is how was Kabuto captured in the first place?" The figure asked his dark blue eyes cold even as his face grinned. "I mean, you swore on his skills that he could beat anyone who discovered he was a traitor, after all."

Orochimaru glowered at the figure but said nothing. He turned to a table in the room and lifted a scroll off of it, tossing it lightly to the other man.

"According to my spy Kakashi had help. According to Kakashi's report to the Hokage, a masked woman in red and black armor wearing the symbol of Nagareboshigakure and another symbol he couldn't identify helped subdue Kabuto. It's all in the scroll, Ameshira."

The man's eyes widened for a moment in surprise before they narrowed, their depths becoming even colder. Orochimaru grinned to him self at the man's surprise.

"So, she must know I'm working with you then. That would certainly explain why we lost a team two weeks ago, and why so many of my lizards seem to be disappearing from Konoha." The man muttered as he read the scroll. Finally he rolled it back up and looked up at Orochimaru again. "Well, we better continue with the preparations then. This may make things more difficult, but in the end Konoha will fall, and with it, Nagareboshi's hopes allying itself with one of the major powers will die."

The man's evil laughter was surpassed only by Orochimaru's own creepy chuckle.

* * *

**Four Weeks Until the Invasion…**

Naruto awoke the following morning to the pleasant warmth of Ino draped over him, his fellow blond snuggling tightly against him in the brisk morning air. The blond boy smiled and stroked Ino's hair lightly for a few moments before performing a few quick hand seals. Within moments Naruto was standing in the middle of the room stretching while one of his Kage Bunshin took his place in Ino's arms, keeping his fellow blond warm as he went to check on Hinata.

He found his other lover curled up under the covers of the large bed they all shared, sleeping peacefully. Carefully Naruto stroked her hair out of her face and kissed her softly on the cheek. As he stood back up and walked towards the bathroom to take a shower he performed some more hand seals and in a puff of smoke there was a second Kage Bunshin lying on the bed beside Hinata, cuddling the dark-haired girl and keeping her warm from the morning cold.

Whistling to him self Naruto turned on the hot water in the shower and let it begin to flow as he walked over to the sink, splashing his face with water and looking at his reflection in the mirror. The face that gazed back was framed by a mess of long, unruly blond hair and defined by a pair of bright blue eyes and six pale whisker marks. Frowning slightly Naruto focused on the energy within him self and drew very slightly on Kyuubi's chakra. His eyes turned purple and glowed faintly as the pupils became slightly slitted. His nails elongated slightly as if becoming claws while the whisker marks on his face deepened slightly.

Naruto saw none of this though, as he was deep in thought.

_Just who are those Nagareboshi shinobi, really? That blond kid Arashi looked like we could have been related. And that Sora, he was like a real demon out there during the preliminary matches._

_**You have no idea, Kit, do you?**_

_What? What do you mean Kyuubi?_ Naruto asked as Kyuubi's voice intruded upon his musings.

_**You'll find out soon enough, brat. Just focus on your training and be ready for the fight of your life if you face him in the arena.**_

Naruto just shivered as Kyuubi's dark and barking laughter filled his mind. Returning to the world around him his features returned to normal, his eyes brightening to blue once again, and stepped into the shower to get cleaned off. After all, he only had a scant month's time left to prepare for the finals of the Chuunin Exam, and if he wanted to be ready to face Sora or that creepy Suna genin Gaara then he was going to need to track down the two people capable of training him as soon as possible.

As the warm steam settled in around him Naruto never even entertained the thought of improving to beat Sasuke. As far as he was concerned the Uchiha was merely an arrogant pain-in-the-ass who had outlived his usefulness to the world. He couldn't even provide the blond teen with a decent challenge.

* * *

An hour later, after having kissed both of his gorgeous girlfriends good morning on his way out the door, Naruto stood before the doors of the Hokage's office with a massive grin on his face. He had already found his teacher Kurenai and gotten her permission to seek assistance from others in preparing for the exam. Kurenai had always been a proponent that when it came to the idea that when it came certain subjects that genin should receive specialized instruction from specialists rather than their normal teachers, so she had been pleased when her student asked her permission and advice on who might be a good option as to ask for training.

Still grinning Naruto pushed open the doors and entered. He found the old man hiding behind a massive pile of paperwork. When he didn't look up after a few minutes Naruto cleared his throat to get his attention.

"Ah, Naruto. It's good to see you. May I ask what brings you to my office so early this bright morning?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked as he looked at the blond-haired boy over the top of the mountains of paperwork covering his desk. "You aren't having any more conflicts with Uchiha Sasuke, are you?"

Naruto chuckled. Apparently Sarutobi _had_ heard about the injury that Naruto's girlfriends had caused to the Uchiha heir.

_From the council complaining about it no doubt._

"Actually old man, I'm hear to ask permission to receive training from someone other than Kurenai-sensei for the finals. She is a great team leader and teacher, don't get me wrong, but I've never been very good with Genjutsu, so she can't teach me as much as someone else could."

Sarutobi paused and leant back in his chair, clearly thinking over the possibilities. Every now and then Naruto caught tiny parts of the Hokage's mutterings, mostly relating to why various shinobi were either unavailable or would be inappropriate for his training. Finally, after five long minutes, he snapped his fingers.

"That's it!" He said, leaning forward with a grin and pushing a button on his desk.

"Michiru, please send the ANBU on standby to locate Jiraiya of the Sannin and have him brought to my office immediately. Thank you."

Sarutobi leant back and grinned.

"Naruto, I think it's about time that Jiraiya teach you a technique that is yours by right, the first of your father's original techniques." Sarutobi leant forward and clasped his hands together, smiling. "It's time that you learn the Rasengan."

Naruto's jaw nearly hit the floor. He had been hoping to receive some sort of advanced training, but never in a million years had he hoped that he would be taught the Rasengan. His mother had never learned it, and Jiraiya had always told him that he would have to prove him self worthy of his father before he would teach him it.

The grin that answered the Hokage's as soon as Naruto managed to pick his jaw up off the floor could have given the Gai-Lee Special a run for its money.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a remote training ground that had been granted to the members of the Nagareboshi-gakure contingent for the duration of their stay in Konoha, the four shinobi who had made it to the finals were currently deliberating over their training strategy.

"So, since I'll be fighting that Rock Lee guy, I think I'm going to stick mostly to taijutsu. The Bingo Book lists his Jounin sensei as being a taijutsu expert rumored to be able to open the gates, so I'll have _that_ as backup just in case he taught his student to do so as well. None of you are really skilled enough in heavy-style taijutsu to be enough assistance with my training though, so I guess I'll have to train mostly with Isamu-sensei, or maybe that Pyromancer Kaze. She may not look it, but she packs a mean dropkick." Sora said, absentmindedly rubbing the spot on the back of his head where said girl had managed to nail him the last time he had talked her into a spar.

"Well, I guess I'll practice fighting Akane then. She and her familiars can help me improve my skills dealing with multiple opponents, and while my abilities may not be wind based I can certainly give her a challenge using large-scale water attacks. I can also have Arashi help. He's still angry that he had to withdraw from his match." Ren continued with her arms crossed across her chest.

Sora sighed. "Yeah, but you know why he had to, Ren. None of us, not even me, are strong enough to take on the Jinchuriki of the Ichibi Shukaku without drawing on all our abilities, and you know we aren't allowed to reveal those yet. We were lucky to even get permission to draw the Akumaken for the preliminary matches. Don't try to deny that that was why you were able to beat that Inuzuka pup, Akane."

Said brunette merely looked at her feet sheepishly. Her two partners were running around the training ground chasing the two otters that always followed Nobu around. Currently Ketsueki Kiba had managed to pin one of the otters and appeared to be tickling the unfortunate victim.

"Well, I'd like to get some training in against both Akane and Arashi, since I'll be fighting either Akane or that cute Suna-kunoichi that has her eye on you Sora." Nobu said, his cobalt blue hair shifting slightly in the breeze. He was leaning on his giant flask, which he had placed on the ground in front of him.

"I don't see any problems with that, since it will let me improve my counters for your water techniques after all." Akane said with a smirk. She and Nobu had been rivals since their academy days, and neither of them would pass up a chance to have a match against the other.

"You're just lucky I didn't make it to the finals, or neither of you would stand a chance." Tsubaki's low voice came as the black-haired girl dropped out of the trees nearby, landing lightly in a crouch next to Sora before standing up. The dark-haired and heavily-bandaged kunoichi stepped quickly into Sora's waiting embrace and kissed him fiercely. She noted absentmindedly as she did so that Sora had placed his arms in just such a manner as to avoid the worst of her injuries, causing her no further pain. It only emphasized to her how much the taller red-haired shinobi cared for her.

When the pair finally broke their kiss and turned back to face the others they found that they all had small grins on their faces.

"Hmm, with kisses like that I could consider having a go at Sora myself." Ren said with a chuckle.

"Oh shut it Ren. We all know you set your eyes on that pink-haired banshee from Konoha, much as we wonder why." Tsubaki muttered as she leant against Sora, supported by his arms around her waist.

Ren just smirked. "I don't expect you all to understand. I'm going to enjoy breaking her though. I'm sure she will be a right minx…once I get her in the sack that is."

Everyone shifted a step away as Ren's eyes glazed over and an almost inhuman growling-chuckle escaped her throat.

Several passing ANBU, returning to Konoha from patrols along the walls, shivered as they heard this sound echoing through the forest. Each of them felt as if some sort of icy wolf demon had walked across their graves, but for the life of them none of them could figure out why.

* * *

**Three Weeks Until the Invasion…**

Sabaku no Temari was currently suffering from an emotion that she rarely felt. As a kunoichi and a shinobi of Suna it was a dangerous emotion to let her self feel. As the sister of a Jinchuriki, one who was bloodthirsty and relatively unstable, it was not a safe emotion to feel either. As a member of a village planning to take part in an invasion of the village which was currently playing host to her and her siblings it was simply unforgivable.

Sabaku no Temari was feeling remorse.

The poor girl simply didn't know what to do. On one hand, a successful invasion of Konoha would result in Sunagakure increasing its prestige amongst the other villages, and likely securing an alliance with Iwagakure, their northern neighbor who had fought against Konoha in the last great shinobi war. It would result in the strengthening of Suna's military forces once again, as well as sending a message to all the Daimyou in the Elemental Countries that Sunagakure was one of the strongest, having destroyed Konoha who previously topped the list as the strongest.

On the other, the people of the village were no different that those of her own. Sure, they might have treated water more carelessly than those of Suna, and the clothes they wore were different, but ultimately they were the same. On top of that, any shinobi from other nations who were caught in the invasion were likely to side with Konoha and die as a result. And this lead to her second problem.

Kabatsu Sora.

The older shinobi may not have been the only one involved in her rescue several months prior, but he had certainly been the one who caught her attention once they had saved her from the Iwagakure shinobi who had kidnapped her. His fiery red air, dichromatic eyes, and commanding personality were such an attraction to her that Temari had often caught her hand drifting towards her crotch on numerous occasions, many of which nearly got her in trouble for embarrassing her self in public. Her brothers had apparently begun casting silencing jutsus around her room as well, since when she was alone Temari dealt with her frustration in a very vigorous and verbal manner.

She knew that Sora was involved with that that psycho-girl Tsubaki who had gotten her ass handed to her in the prelimaries, but she also knew that the couple was apparently not averse to Sora having multiple mates. His status within his own village apparently allowed him that luxury, though she wasn't really sure why. All Sora would admit was that it had something to do with 'preserving the power of his heritage' and then try to change the subject. The few times she had managed to get him alone during the last week, for lunch one day and breakfast another, she had found that she couldn't enjoy herself properly knowing that the actions of her village could end up killing him. And even though she hadn't had much of it of any kind in her life prior to the point (her father was a cold-hearted bastard, and being the sister of Suna's resident jinchuriki scared off most boys, her brothers normally scaring off the rest) she was still a woman and thus recognized that the feelings that she was feeling for the Nagareboshi boy were feelings of love.

Add in the fact that her brothers not only failed to scare the boy off when the two flirted with on another, but also seemed to approve of him, one could almost call it a match made in heaven, or hell as the situation would more appropriately be. After all, not every girl can claim that her Jinchuriki brother approves of her relationship with a person who might as well be a demon him self, if the rumors were true. Even Shukaku, the insane demon that Gaara kept contained within him self, seemed reluctant to cross the Nagareboshi genin.

This of course confused the blond to no end, as Gaara had never feared anyone in the slightest before, not even their father.

Still confused, Temari went back to working on her techniques while Gaara and Kankurou played a game of Go Fish in a corner of the training ground. Of the three, she was the only one who felt she needed to improve. After all, neither of the _boys_ was hoping to attract a great shinobi and get him to fuck their brains out.

* * *

Haruno Sakura had a dilemma, and the only friend she could turn to for advice she had alienated months before when the Ino-pig had turned her attentions from Sasuke to that blond boy Naruto. At first the pink haired kunoichi had believed it was just a ploy by her friend to make Sasuke jealous, so she had treated her long time friend even worse than usual. This had the opposite effect of what she had hoped, driving said friend further away than she had intended.

But now Sakura's only hope to fix their friendship was to talk to her friend, and to find out the truth. She needed to know if Ino was serious about this other boy, or if she was just wasting time until Sasuke took notice of her. The dark-haired boy had informed Sakura when he had gotten out of the hospital to go train with Kakashi for a month that as clan heir he could have multiple wives in order to repopulate the clan, surprising the pink-haired girl. It had taken her nearly a week of deep thinking to come to a decision, and now she was carrying it out.

"PERVERT!!!!"

Sakura pushed her self flat against the edge of the nearest building as an older-looking man with long wild grey hair and red markings on his face suddenly came running past while being chased by a massive crowd of women wrapped in towels. Every single one of the women was screaming for his head and wielding some sort of weapon and the mob was kicking up a cloud of dust that could block out the sun. A trio of well-built girls at the head of the group seemed familiar to Sakura, but she wasn't able to get a good enough look at them as the crowd swept past her, the wind from their wake nearly blowing her over.

When the dust settled Sakura removed the arm she had protected her face with and blinked, watching as the cloud disappeared into the distance. After a few moments she coughed some dust out of her throat and continued on, turning into an apartment complex that seemed to be mostly deserted and made her way to the third story apartment that she had found out from Ino's mother belonged to one Namikaze Naruto.

Sakura had initially gone by the Yamanaka Flower Shop in order to see her friend, only for Ino's mother Izumi to inform her that Ino hadn't been living at home for several months. Since they were now legally adults by Konoha law Ino had been living the majority of the time with her boyfriend Naruto.

"Such a nice boy." Izumi had said with a faint smile on her face. "Always so attentive of my daughter and his other girlfriend. I'm sure that once they are old enough and get married that he'll give me lots of grandbabies to spoil."

Sakura had merely sweat dropped and politely excused her self, but not before asking where Naruto's apartment was.

The pink haired girl now stood before the entrance to said apartment, and was taking several deep breaths to steal her courage. Finally after several long moments wherein she raised her hand to knock on the door several times only to chicken out and lower it tentatively Sakura knocked on the door. She heard a muffled 'Be right there' from inside the apartment and stepped back as she heard muffled footsteps. There was the sound of a chain being slid out of its slot and a lock being undone and then the door was opened inward, revealing the blond hair and blue eyes of Namikaze Naruto, currently dressed in a black t shirt and shorts with a white apron over it.

"What can I do for you?" Naruto asked, blinking for a moment before he realized who was standing before him. "Oh, Haruno-san. What are you doing here?"

It was clear that Naruto was very confused as to why Sakura was there, as if she were the second to last person he had expected to find when he had opened the door.

"Um, is Ino in?" Sakura asked hesitantly, fighting to keep from getting lost in Naruto's bright blue eyes.

Naruto blinked and then his mind finally put two and two together. "Oh, that's why you're here. Yeah, she's taking a shower but she should be out in a few minutes. Would you like to come inside and wait for her?"

Sakura nodded and followed Naruto into the apartment, the blond boy closing the door lightly behind her.

"Just make your self at home in the living room. Can I get you something to drink?" Naruto asked as he returned to the kitchen. Sakura caught sight of several steaming pots on top of the stove, and there was what appeared to be an uncooked casserole sitting on kitchen table. From the cutting board covered with diced ingredients sitting beside it Sakura determined that Naruto hadn't completed the casserole.

"No thank you." She replied as she took a seat in the living room.

Looking around she was amazed at the interior. The apartment itself was fairly large, and if it weren't for a set of swords hanging from one wall and the rack of shinobi equipment in the entrance hall she would have no idea that a Konoha shinobi lived here. The colors were a mixture of soft reds and dark browns, with gentle greens that blended in with the rest of the colors. There were pictures on the walls, mostly of Konoha or of people that Naruto must know.

In one corner there was a picture of Ino smiling with her mother the day that she had passed her genin exam. Next to it was a picture of Naruto and Hinata that had obviously been taken in one of those photo booths that littered the market district, and next to that was a picture of all three wearing elegant clothing that must have been taken during one of the festivals at the start of the summer. Hinata and Ino were wearing similar outfits, Ino's Yukata a deep purple while Hinata's was a pale lavender, and Naruto was wearing a dark blue yukata with orange trim. All three had such happy smiles in the picture that Sakura had to look away.

_They look so happy in that picture. Why can't I find that? I'm attractive enough, so why doesn't Sasuke-kun treat me like that?_

"Sakura?"

Ino's voice drew Sakura out of her thoughts. As she turned to face her friend Sakura caught sight of a clock on the wall and realized that she must have been staring into space for a good ten minutes.

"Hello Ino." Sakura said softly, looking down at her feet as her friend took a seat on a chair across the coffee table from her. "How have you been?"

Ino shrugged as she continued to dry her hair with a big fluffy purple towel. She was wearing a dark purple fluffy robe and had on a pair of fuzzy red slippers that appeared to be foxes.

_Weird._ Sakura thought as she noticed this last part, but she promptly pushed it out of her mind as Ino began to speak.

"I'm doing pretty well. The bruises from the exams are mostly gone, and since Naruto is busy training for the finals and Hinata is still recovering from her wounds Kurenai-sensei has us doing only light-duty D-rank missions for now." Ino said as she finished wrapping the towel around her head and tucked it in so it would stay put. "Naruto-kun, could you get me a cup of that tea I like?"

Naruto yelled back an acknowledgement of her request and appeared a few moments later with a steaming cup of tea which he handed carefully to Ino. The blond girl inhaled deeply and Sakura watched in fascination as a blissful smile took over her friend's face.

"Mmmmm, perfect." Ino said after taking a sip of the tea. "So, Sakura, what brings you here? I must admit I'm a little surprised, given you've pretty much avoided me since team assignments."

Sakura looked down with a guilty look on her face before looking back up.

"Um, about that Ino. I'm sorry. I acted without thinking and I'm sorry."

Ino had to blink and set her tea down carefully.

"Well, I'm even more surprised. What happened to make you actually get smart about all this?"

Sakura blushed and looked to the side.

"Well, um, Sasuke-kun told me something earlier this week. He said that as the last of his clan he gets to take multiple wives. I came to offer an olive branch because this means we don't have a reason to fight. We never had a reason to fight. We can both have Sasuke-kun!"

Sakura's voice got more confident and excited as she went on speaking. But as she was still looking down at the coffee table she didn't see her friend's face until she looked up as she finished her last exclamation. Ino's face had started with an expression of curiosity, but this had fallen as Ino pursed her lips into a straight line. This flat look was steadily replaced by a look of anger and then fury, until Ino was clenching the arms of the chair she was in with all her strength in an attempt to control her rage. When Sakura looked up and saw Ino's face the pink-haired girl's face paled in fear moments before Ino went off on her.

"YOU IDIOTIC CONCEITED LITTLE BITCH!! WHY IN THE NINE HELLS WOULD I EVER WANT TO BE WITH THAT ASSHOLE?!! SURE I WAS AN IDIOT ONCE AND CHASED AFTER HIM, BUT THAT WAS BEFORE I MET A QUALITY GUY!! DID SASUKE ALSO TELL YOU THAT HE TRIED TO PROPOSITION ME AND HINATA WHILE WE WERE ON A DATE WITH NARUTO-KUN!?! THE BASTARD ACTED LIKE HE EXPECTED US TO JUST SAY YES THE MOMENT HE SHOWED THE SLIGHTEST INTEREST IN US!! DIDN'T YOU WONDER WHY THE BASTARD SHOWED UP TO THE EXAMS WITH AN ICEPACK IN HIS PANTS AND A LIMP?!!! ITS BECAUSE HINATA AND I KICKED THE BASTARD FOR HIS INSOLENCE!!"

Ino stood up, her hands still clenched as she took several deep breaths in a partially-successful attempt to calm down.

"Now, I advise you to leave before I do or say something that we are both going to regret. You were my best friend Sakura, and I hope that we can be friends again someday, but it is clear to me that that will never happen until you get over that Uchiha-teme and get over yourself." Ino said as she pointed towards the door.

"Whatever Ino-pig!! You just want him all to yourself, don't you!!?!" Sakura yelled back as she stood and marched out. This had not gone the way she had planned at all.

As soon as Ino had slammed the door behind her Sakura took off running, hoping she could make it home before she burst into tears. Her best friend officially hated her, and it was tearing her up inside.

Meanwhile Ino had rushed to Naruto and threw her self into his arms, forcing him to turn down the heat on the stove and carry her over to the couch where he could comfort her properly. As the blond girl cried her eyes out on Naruto's shoulder the Namikaze heir looked up and shared a cold look for several seconds with a clone of him self. Nodding the clone dispelled itself, carrying the memories of the incident back to the original Naruto.

* * *

In a training ground in the middle of Konoha's forest Namikaze Naruto stood in the middle of a patch of soggy ground. To one side was a pile of wet and ruptured balloons, while on the other was a small pile of the remaining water filled balloons. Namikaze Naruto had just successfully punctured his fifteenth balloon in a row when the dispelled clone's memories flooded into his mind.

"No…" He whispered softly before vanishing in a leaf shunshin, leaving the remaining balloons behind. The emotional wellbeing of his Himes trumped training any day.

* * *

**Nagareboshigakure, Office of the Ryuukage**…

In an office not too different from that of the Hokage of Konohagakure sat an old man who wore the traditional robes of state for the leader of his village. They were white with a black lining with scattered spots that sparkled like the night sky, and the hat was black as night with the symbol of Nagareboshi inscribed front and center. This was Shinomori Kohaku, known as the Dragon Blade and one of the most famous members of the Shinomori Clan in recent decades.

The old man was just reaching for another paper off the massive pile that sat to one side of his desk when a large hawk flew in through the massive bay windows that covered one side of the office, providing an uninterrupted view of the village. The bird landed and a figure in a dark hooded cloak leapt off the back of the hawk lightly and landed beside the summon's head, petting it lightly as she removed her hood.

"Kabatsu Cora. What an unexpected surprise." Kohaku said with a faint smile on his face.

"Oh shove it you brat. I'm here right when I said I'd be. We're sure he's involved now by the way. That spy that my ladies helped capture a week ago was assassinated earlier today by five shinobi wearing Kumo hitai-ate, but we're certain that that was just a ruse to throw us off. We're sure he's involved now, as if the presence of those damned lizards of him weren't enough of a tip off. He left his scratched hitai-ate at the scene. I think the brat's taunting us." Cora replied.

Kohaku looked thoughtful as he leant forward and crossed his arms.

"So what does this mean for our plans then?" He asked, fully serious.

Cora returned his gaze. Both of their eyes suddenly glowed faintly and turned slitted like a reptile's. Kohaku's turned blue as they changed, while Cora's turned red.

"**It means that we are going to need to all be there, to protect the younglings. Ameshira Takuma's plans cannot be allowed to proceed any further, and neither can we afford to lose any of them. We are so close, brother, I can feel it. The call to Reunion comes, it is only a matter of time. But if we have to wait for another generation to grow to maturity, then I fear that we will miss the first chance we have had in nearly a thousand years, ever since we were sealed.**" Kabatsu Cora's deep growling voice echoed around the chamber, but Kohaku was not fazed.

"**Very well, I am sure that Ameshira Yori will wish to see her cousin in battle, and no one will fault the leader of a village bringing his three strongest shinobi along for his protection. That will allow me to ensure that Fushira Suzume is on hand as well. With all of us competing or watching, I am sure that we will be able to protect the younglings regardless of what happens during the exam.**" Kohaku's voice replied. While Cora's seemed to carry a dark fire to it, Kohaku's baritone was cold as ice.

Both shinobi closed their eyes and took deep breaths. When they opened their eyes they were back to their normal eyes.

"Very well. I return to Konoha and continue preparations for your arrival, Kohaku-san. Don't die on me before the exams brat, you still owe me a fight before the Shinigami claims your soul." Cora said as she stepped towards the window after her hawk and hopped onto its back. Shinomori Kohaku leant back in his chair and chuckled as he lit his pipe, watching the woman who had once been his Jounin-sensei fly off into the fading sunlight.

* * *

**Two Weeks Until the Invasion…**

"Ne, Hikaru-san. The usual please."

Shikamaru looked up from the game of Shouji he was playing with Asuma to see Kabatsu Cora entering the restaurant, flanked by the psycho who had proctored the second part of the Chunin Exams and the girl that Shikamaru had been unable to get out of his head for the past two weeks.

Shinomori Tsubaki.

The girl was an enigma to the lazy genius, one that just screamed for him to solve it. On top of that the Nara boy had to admit that she was very attractive, and had a very "troublesome" personality. Close analysis of the Nara line would show a marked tendency in the males to fall in love with and marry so-called "troublesome" women. His own mother Yoshino was a prime example of this. He never talked about it to his friends, as they were troublesome enough without ragging on him about his mom, but his father had once told him that his mother's favored weapon when she was younger was a blade whip that had 'dominatrix' written all over it.

Shikamaru's hands moved of their own accord and made his next move as the genius watched the red-haired foreigner and his two companions take a seat in a booth across the room. As they walked he watched the way Tsubaki moved, the way her long bare legs came up and connected with the tight ass she had enclosed in a pair of tight black shorts, the way her shirt clung tightly to her curves and her hair seemed to float around her head.

_Shake yourself out of it Shikamaru, you're almost behaving like a fangirl. This is so troublesome._

The Nara heir shook his head and attempted to refocus on his game. However he found that he couldn't remain focused for long and kept sneaking glances at Tsubaki. While he couldn't hear most of what was being said, several eerie laughs from the psycho-lady and the way Tsubaki and Sora seemed to be grinning filled him in that they were apparently flirting at a level far beyond even the Uchiha fangirls. Finally he saw Tsubaki lean against Sora as they finished their meal and smile a happy smile as the older boy stroked her hair lightly.

And the Nara boy couldn't explain why he felt a sudden impulse of jealous rage at that sight.

Or rather, he didn't want to admit that he had managed to fall head over heals with a girl. It would be much too troublesome.

* * *

"Well gaki, thanks for the meal. It was very entertaining." Anko grinned like a snake at the tall red head and his black-haired girlfriend as the trio exited the restaurant.

"Anytime for a goddess such as yourself, Anko-chan. You are a stunning example of everything a woman should b-" Sora's reply was cut off as Tsubaki elbowed him sharply in the ribs and crossed her arms in annoyance.

"Hmph."

Sora chuckled as he recovered.

"Well, almost everything." He corrected, mollifying Tsubaki who smiled widely again and snuggled back up to Sora, favoring the tall boy with a deep kiss.

"Much better, Sora-koi." She said softly as they reluctantly broke the kiss. The pair remained staring into the other's eyes until a pair of coughs drew their attention back to the world around them.

Anko had her arms crossed and was eying the pair thoughtfully, no doubt imagining the possible bedroom fun she could have with the pair, while next to her stood a pink-clad blonde who was blushing furiously. Neither Sora nor Tsubaki would ever find out, but at that precise moment Temari had been imagining her self in Tsubaki's position, and Tsubaki crouched with her head between Temari's thighs. This of course lead to Temari quickly wiping a stream of blood from her nose while hoping that nobody had seen it.

Tsubaki chuckled while Sora just grinned.

"Anyways, we'll see you later Anko-chan. I need to get back to training for the finals." Sora said as he grinned at the pair of thoughtful and stunned girls. "And Temari-chan, it's good to see you again. You really need to work on not letting others know that you are having perverted thoughts though. It could get you in trouble one day."

Temari swallowed and was about to acknowledge his rebuke when her confidence finally rose up. Stepping forward suddenly she pressed herself up against Sora, her chest pressed firmly against the light armor he was wearing and her lips just centimeters away from his own. She lightly traced her hand along the inside of his thigh as she leant up and whispered huskily in his ear.

"And what if I _want_ you to know that I'm thinking such thoughts?"

Sora at least had the good manners to flush like a tomato while Tsubaki doubled over in laughter, drawing an annoyed glare from the older girl. When she finally righted her self and caught sight of Temari again she smirked and managed to choke out past her laughter.

"You're all right, Temari. I think I might enjoy sharing Sora with a girl like you. Just make sure you don't get your self in over your head, as our Sora here is a real animal in bed."

As if to emphasize Tsubaki's point Temari suddenly felt Sora's hand cop a quick feel of her ass before he kissed her softly on the lips and led a still-laughing Tsubaki away towards the training fields. Temari just stood stunned and watched them go, only being shaken out of her reverie by the feel of Anko's hand settling on her shoulder.

"Such an interesting boy, that one. I'm sure once I can finally get him riled up enough he'll pounce on me like a tiger. He'll probably do the same to you if what just happened was any indication." Anko said as she pouted at this point. "I mean, he hasn't even kissed my cheek yet and you just got some lip action."

Anko grinned suddenly as she looked over at the younger girl.

"Oh well, at least I can test out the goods before he gets to them."

Temari was about to ask Anko what the hell she meant by that last comment when she felt the older woman's hands snake around her body and cup both of her breasts, squeezing them lightly and pinching her nipple through the pale material.

"Mmm, perfect size for a guy like Sora to enjoy, and seems your nipples are erect already. Just what thoughts were you thinking about that boy, hmm? I wonder if you got yourself wet from just thinking about him. Maybe I should che-"

Anko never finished her sentence as a very pink, very embarrassed, and very freaked out Temari used a sand shunshin to escape from the snake jounin's clutches. Anko just blinked and then burst out laughing before she turned and headed off to the Hokage's tower to report for her afternoon shift with Ibiki. They were trying to figure out how those assassins had managed to infiltrate all the way to the ANBU's secure holding cells.

As she left she failed to notice a dark-red haired figure sitting in a nearby tree step out onto a branch and into the sunlight. Gaara's hair waved lightly in the breeze as he watched the retreating backs of the boy that his sister seemed to like and the older woman who may be a rival. Nodding to him self as if he had made a decision Gaara vanished in a sand shunshin, off to do whatever it was that half-insane Jinchuriki did.

* * *

As tourists, travelers, and merchants streamed slowly in and out of Konoha's main gate a tall woman with long wavy brown hair, ruby eyes, and a dark red jacket open at the front revealing the dark pants and shirt that she was wearing that revealed a fair amount of cleavage stopped and stared up at the massive arch of the gates. She had a rectangular golden charm dangling from a necklace around her neck and a tiny red symbol below her right eye.

_Only two more weeks and then I can get off this backwater planet._

Narrowing her eyes and showing almost no sign of emotion she stepped forward and entered Konoha.

* * *

**One Week Until the Invasion…**

"Again." Jiraiya's voice barked out at the twenty identical copies of Naruto that stood side by side in front of a line of posts.

As one ten of the Naruto's stepped forward and held their hand back behind them with the palms facing upward. Blue chakra began to gather and swirl in the palm as wind rolled around the hands of the clones. All ten of them appeared to be concentrating their hardest, but the sphere just didn't seem to want to form properly. Finally the ten clones stepped forward and began to strike the chakra sphere rapidly, causing it to spiral even more until it condensed fully into a spinning sphere of chakra.

As one the first ten clones launched forward and thrust their hands out towards the logs before them.

"RASENGAN!!" They cried as they plowed the chakra sphere into the logs, drilling a hole through them.

"Again." Jiraiya repeated as the exhausted clones backed away from posts and the second set stepped forward for their turn.

He may have been driving the boy into the ground with the training, but he had to admit that Naruto was something else. The boy had managed to learn and nearly master in three weeks a technique that had taken his father nearly three years to develop in the first place. Jiraiya held his face with one hand and grinned as an idea began to formulate.

_Yes, if he can master this technique in the next two days I may just have to let him sign the contract. I'm sure Gamabunta will approve of him._

As Jiraiya called out for the clones to continue with the training his grin turned lecherous as he began to think about the 'research' he would be doing later that evening.

* * *

Tenten Kuroda sighed in pleasure as she sank into the hot steaming waters of the famous hot baths owned by the Hyuuga clan. She had only just been allowed to begin training again, having finally recovered from most of the wounds she had incurred during the preliminaries, and she was sore as hell from it. She had pushed herself so hard that she was pretty certain she had pulled a muscle or two, so she was treating her self by visiting the hot springs to relax.

"So then he let his guard down, thinking that he had me with his water, and right at his weakest point the clone I had disguised as Panthera vanished and Panthera dug up out of the ground and knocked him out by hitting him in the balls."

Tenten's ears perked up as she heard a rough female voice and the laughter of several other females that followed the statement. Looking towards the entrance she caught sight of the psycho lady who had proctored the second part of the exam, Anko, walking alongside the blond Suna kunoichi she remembered from the preliminaries. They were both wrapped in towels and were quickly followed by a trio of girls that she recognized after a moment were the three from Nagareboshigakure, and that meant…

_That girl is the one that that cute boy who used all those weapons was paying so much attention to!_

Tenten sank a little deeper into the water and blew some bubbles in discontent as she watched her fellow kunoichi leave their towels on the edge of the springs and sink under the steaming water.

"Man, I can't believe that Nobu let his guard down like that. Unfortunately you wasted a perfectly good trump card, because now he's going to be prepared to counter that trick." Tsubaki said.

Tenten didn't hear anything else that was said as she had drifted off into her own little world and was currently in the process of comparing Tsubaki to herself, both figuratively, literally, and figurely (if you catch my meaning). Tenten and Tsubaki had both lost their fights in the preliminaries, but Tsubaki had made a much better showing of it. The girl had a strong personality and from what Tenten had seen over the past several weeks seemed to revel in little conflicts and mock arguments with Sora. Tenten was determined to prove that kunoichi could be strong and respected, so she didn't really feel that she fell short in that department; likewise with skills. Tsubaki had clearly had some sort of ability that had to be a clan secret if not an outright bloodline, but Tenten personally felt that given the way that Sora had made use of weapon storage scrolls during the battle was similar to how Tenten her self fought that her skills would hopefully impress the tall red head.

But when it came to her figure, and progressing from there to her experience, Tenten realized that she really didn't compare. Her body was lithe but she had built up strongly defined muscles in her arms and legs as a result of training with her team all the time. She had attractive if relatively plain features, her plain black hair normally kept in a pair of buns to keep it out of the way and her eyes a nondescript brown. Her skin was neither overly pale, which some guys seem to like, nor was she overly tanned, which they also seemed to like, and her breasts we fairly small. She tried not to show it, but this last part was a fact that always upset her, and she only hoped that she would grow a little more before she stopped maturing.

Tsubaki on the other hand was tan all over. Tenten had blushed at how easily the girl had revealed her body as she entered the water, especially since she had been able to catch sight of all of the foreign girl's goodies. Tsubaki's breasts were clearly a cup size larger than her own, and despite how tan her body was her nipples were small and a bright pink. She didn't appear to have a single ounce of fat on her body, although that wasn't to surprising for an active kunoichi, and with the exception of the hair on top of her head it was clear that her skin was utterly smooth.

Tenten had to fight to keep from blushing as she realized that Tsubaki was either genetically lucky and didn't grow hair anywhere on her body except her head, or the girl had completely shaved or waxed her entire body, including above her crotch. She would never admit it, but within her jealousy was buried a tiny seed of curiosity of whether or not the carpet matched the drapes, given there was no sign of any carpet to compare the drapes to in the first place.

A loud giggle knocked Tenten out of her jealous thoughts and she turned her head to look towards the entrance again, catching sight of another pair of girls entering. The first was a dark-haired girl that she remembered was Neji's cousin, while the second was the blond girl who always seemed to be with her. Tenten had been wondering if the two were dating or something when Ren spoke up.

"Hey, Ino and Hinata, right? Why don't you join us, the water's great!" She cupped her hands and called out.

Both girls paused, remembering that Ren had apparently been chasing after Sakura all week, but then thought better of turning around and leaving and stepped forward to join the others in the water.

"Hello…Ren, wasn't it?" Ino asked as she settled into the steaming water and sighed in relief. Next to her Hinata practically moaned as the hot steamy water covered her body.

"My my, I'm guessing that moan must mean that your Naruto-kun gave you quite the grinding last night, as I know you aren't cleared for duty yet." Anko said with a grin.

Tenten blinked and then watched as Hinata blushed furiously as she realized that the older woman had just figured out what Naruto had been doing to her the night before. Tenten's thoughts unfortunately could do nothing but begin imagining just what he must have been doing and the dark-haired girl nearly passed out as they decided to take a side trip. She had gone from imagining that blond boy Naruto and Hinata making love in a bed to imagining Sora stripping her naked and doing her hard in the middle of the hot springs.

It's a little known fact that the reason Tenten is so driven to prove that she can be a strong kunoichi and that kunoichi are not weaker than men is that she has long harbored a secret desire to be dominated by a man. She had once viewed her teammate Neji as attractive enough and powerful enough to serve that role in her life, but the bastard never cared about anything other than training and his own brooding. So when Sora had appeared in her life she had swiftly found her thoughts leaving Neji, who they had never really managed to get further than thinking about kissing, to imagining the red-haired boy literally ravaging her, taking her as his own sexual conquest and keeping her by his side as both an ally and his plaything.

Tenten suddenly gave a start as she realized that while she had been off in her own little world her hand had slid down to her crotch and her fingers had begun playing with her pussy. Quickly she pulled her hand away and tried not to look guilty. Luckily for her no one else noticed this, so she had no unfortunate questions or deep sexual innuendo to deal with.

At least, that's what she thought.

On the other end of the hot spring a dark-haired girl who had noticed Tenten watching her and Sora for the past week was eying her appraisingly, as were a certain snake-jounin and a certain foreign blond.

Ren and Akane on the other hand were completely oblivious as they continued to chat animatedly with Naruto's girls.

* * *

Outside the hot springs a dirty old pervert was just getting into position to peek on the bathing women when a booted foot collided with the side of his head and knocked him flying away. As Jiraiya got back to his feet he was surprised that he had not even felt his assailant coming. As he looked back towards where he had come from he found a tall red-haired boy wearing black armor with a black and red jacket under it and a fairly short blond boy flanking a larger man who appeared to be in his early thirties.

"No matter how beautiful they may be, I cannot allow anyone to gaze upon the naked bodies of my student or her friends. For your trespasses you must be punished. Prepare yourself fiend!" Kakkojimen Isamu said this last part as he drew the massive sword strapped to his back. As he drew it the wrappings spread out around it, obscuring him from sight momentarily. As soon as they had settled down Isamu was revealed to be standing with a long rapier held in his right hand, the tip pointed towards Jiraiya's crotch.

"Pervert? You brat, I'm not a pervert." Jiraiya replied in a huff as he crossed his arms. "I'm a SUPER PERVERT!"

Jiraiya chuckled as the trio before him sweat dropped and the red-haired boy's glare darkened.

"I am am Jiraiya of the Sannin, author of Icha Icha Paradise, and I will not allow three foreign shinobi to interfere with my research!"

To his surprise both the tall man with the sword and the blond boy's jaws dropped in surprise.

"Y-you're Jiraiya? THE Jiraiya? AUTHOR OF THE HOLY BOOK!?!?!"

Jiraiya grinned and nodded proudly. He was surprised as the man's sword was suddenly large and strapped to his back again as he and blond boy dropped to their knees before Jiraiya and began kowtowing, chanting "We are not worthy!" over and over again. He noticed that the red head looked surprised but still angry.

"You know..." He said with narrowed eyes. "Just because my girl and I have gotten countless new ways to have sex with one another out of your books doesn't mean that I can forgive you for attempting to see her nude body. The only man allowed to see her naked is me."

Jiraiya smirked. "And what is a genin going to do about it."

Sora smirked and closed his eyes. When he opened them again they were almost completely black with a single red ring and a trio of blue triangles revolving around a blue dot in the center.

"**I'm going to make it so you can't get any research done for a while.**" Sora said, his voice taking on the odd two-tone baritone that seemed peculiar to demon vessels (Read: Jinchuriki).

Sora performed a few quick hand seals and utilized a modification of a technique he had gotten Naruto to teach him. In a puff of smoke he was replaced with a solid copy of a girl with long red hair, an ample bust, and wearing a black kimono.

"PEVERT!!!" She screamed in her now high pitched voice before grabbing the backs of Arashi and Isamu's clothes and all three vanished in a burst of flames.

As the angry horde of women from the hot springs descended upon and beat into unconsciousness Jiraiya of the Sannin a normally very lazy spiky-haired boy who had been hiding in the trees hoping to catch Tsubaki alone as she left the hot springs paled as he realized just what lengths his opponent would go to.

It was a testament to his secret courage that Shikamaru did not give up right then and there.

* * *

**July 1****st****, Day of the Invasion…**

As the sun rose over Konoha the village quickly became a bustle of activity. The village was filled with visitors and dignitaries, there to watch the Chunin Exams, and many to bet on the outcomes of the matches.

Around the village numerous people were slowly awaking to greet the dawn with varying degrees of energy.

In a large apartment across the street from a popular restaurant a blond haired boy who had chosen to cut his hair short so that during the exams he might remind people of just who his father was smiled and snuggled back into the warmth of the two gorgeous naked ladies who had their arms wrapped around him and their ample chests pressed against him for warmth. Namikaze Naruto knew better than to try to free him self when his Himes had him secure pinned like this.

In the noted restaurant across the street five women were already going over intelligence reports and plotting out the most likely points for enemies to infiltrate. They were all wearing their black and red armor under their clothes and with the exception of one who by necessity was forced to wear a kimono for her disguise instead of pants and a jacket were wearing elegant black cloaks that completely concealed their armor.

In a hotel room on the other side of Konoha a red-haired boy lay staring at the ceiling, deep in thought as a smaller girl with dark-hair snuggled closer to him for warmth in the cold morning air. She had her arms wrapped around his waist and her head was resting on his chest, a faint smile on her face as she felt his arm adjust around her and keep her warmer. On the other side of the room a green haired girl was just finishing strapping on her armor and strapping a massive blue-wrapped sword to her back.

In the Nara clan compound a lazy boy was being dragged out of bed by his 'troublesome' mother while his bulky friend continued to sleep in a sleeping bag he had set up on the floor, the crinkling sound of empty chip bags reaching everyone's ears as the bulky boy rolled over in his sleep.

In a clean and relatively austere clan compound near the center of the village a white-eyed Hyuuga was being escorted to out the gates and towards the arena within which the competition was going to take place by a pair of Branch House members and a single member of the Main Branch.

At a small ramen stand that was a favorite of a certain whiskered-blond three genin and two Jounin wearing Nagareboshi hitai-ate were chowing down on some dumplings and a bowls of miso soup to start the day. Around their feet a pair of cats and a pair of otters were playfully chasing one another around the stools.

In a suite of fancy and unmonitored rooms in the fanciest hotel in the city a snakey-bastard was putting on his 'face' while his four guards were once again donning their guises as Suna ANBU.

In a barbecue restaurant near the arena the three Sabaku siblings were busy eating a quiet meal of barbecue short ribs, all three pointedly aware that this restaurant was likely not going to survive their village's betrayal.

In a training ground near the edge of the city a green-clothed Jounin and his nearly identically clothed student were performing a ritual of youthfulness feared by all in Konoha.

Near the arena a pink-haired girl had met up with a member of the Inuzuka Clan, a member of the Aburame Clan, and the three members of Team 11 on her way to the arena. The six of them may not have made it to the finals, but they would be damned if they were going to miss seeing their comrades compete.

In a small dusty apartment four figures stood admiring a small crystal sphere that was glowing red and purple before a red-haired woman put it away in small bag in her cloak. Her companions, an old man with short white hair and green eyes, a tall girl with cobalt blue hair and an otter curled on her shoulder, and a tall woman with golden blond hair streaked with dusky reds all nodded and stepped back. The quartet held one another's hands and performed a series of combined hand seals and vanished into a puddle of shadow.

In a fancy suite in Konoha's fanciest hotel a quartet of figures materialized out of the darkness, revealing the Ryuu and three of his guards. The other two figures in the room moved into position and as one the five shinobi escorted their leader out and into what amounted to hostile territory.

In his office Sarutobi Hiruzen was going over plans for defense of the village with his most trusted shinobi. He had received only one more note from the mysterious shinobi who had been providing him with warnings.

"We are ready."

Even though he couldn't prove it he was fairly certain he knew who had been sending him the messages, and he knew that he could trust her to not betray him.

* * *

Namikaze Naruto stood in the middle of the massive arena as the crowds above cheered. Of the thirteen competitors that had originally been scheduled to compete only eleven were currently gathered. The first was Abumi Zaku who they had been informed had been found dead three days before the exam, so Ameshira Nobu would now be taking his slot in the roster.

The second was Uchiha Sasuke, but given who his sensei was everyone figured that he was just late. Naruto snorted as he suspected that the reason Sasuke hadn't been disqualified for not being there on time was because the Council was putting pressure on the old man.

Sighing and shaking his head lightly he turned back to where Genma was explaining the rules of the tournament to the eleven competitors as the Hokage and Kazekage gathered in the box reserved for the two great leaders. Sora had told him that his own leader was going to be there as well but that he was sitting with foreign dignitaries as he didn't actually deserve the title of Kage according to the five largest shinobi villages.

Finally Naruto saw the Hokage step up to a mic and begin to speak, addressing the entire arena through a set of speakers, his voice and words drawing another round of cheers.

"Thanks everyone for coming to the Konoha Chunin Selection Exam!!" His voce rang out loud, clear, proud, and strong. "We will now start the main tournament matches between the twelve participants who made it through the preliminaries. Please stay and watch until the end!!!"

As the Hokage stepped back from the microphone Genma turned to the genin and finished explaining the very last of the rules. Finally he took out a small handset and spoke into it, his voce echoing from speakers around the arena.

"The first fight will be between Namikaze Naruto and Hyuuga Neji."

The audience began to cheer as Genma turned off the headset.

"You two stay here, the rest of you follow the Jounin behind you. They will escort you to the participants balcony to wait for your matches."

As the other nine competitors followed the Jounin out of the arena Naruto and Neji faced off with one another. Neji was glaring at Naruto with the hatred he showed all Main Branch Hyuuga and all clan heirs. Naruto was glaring right back with the cold hatred of a man who's mate has been injured and who is seeking revenge.

Within Naruto a small fire began to burn as the Kyuubi began to spread small amounts of its chakra through Naruto's system. Slowly the bloodlust was rising, and Hyuuga Neji was about to learn that fate was as mutable as any other substance in existence.

"Ready…" Genma said, holding his hand out between the two boys. Both boys seemingly ignored him as they got into ready stances, their eyes locked with the each others.

"BEGIN!!"

* * *

AN: Ah, another chapter done, and I am sure you all must be wondering just what is to come. Well, unfortunately that must wait until I cycle through new chapters for all my other fics. Ths chapter actually proved harder to write than most previous ones, maybe because I had been writing more action oriented chapters before that. I tried to get the important points of character development in while not taking up too much time, and I managed a solid ten thousand words before it finished itself. Now its back to large amounts of action with various character development thrown in, massive amounts of smackdown, and me likely getting a headache. I will probably work slowly on the next chapter, which I refuse to name until I actually write it, as I work on chapters for the other stories. The reason for this is that I am going to be attempting to write some of the most extensive and detailed fight scenes I have ever attempted. The entirety of the first round matches is going to be in the next chapter, so it may take a good while, but I promuise that I have a reason for not posting the fights until they are all complete, and I promise that I will be striving to provide absolutely amazing battles for you. Naruto's fight with Neji will be just the beginning of the chaos, as several other shinobi show their true strength, and Rock Lee proves that you don't need to be able to use jutsus in order to be a great ninja. All you need is dedication, determination, and the flames of youth.

The idea of the Sand Siblings being fans of Go Fish actually comes from a fic called "Never Cut Twice" by shadowmaster62 and it just hit me as such a perfect expression of their odd personalities that when it came time to write this fic and develop the characters with a tad bit more personality I couldn't help but run with the idea. I strongly recommend you to read his fic, as it is personally one of the best NaruxTemari fics I have encountered, as well as one of the best "rogue Naruto" fics I've read as well. It was written several years ago, and there was not much if any at all to the post-time skip part of the manga out, but it's a really awesome fic. My only sadness is that, while I know he had notes for a possible sequel, he never did write one. Anyways, go and read it, as it is an absolutely awesome fic and deserves much love from you people.

Also, as some of you may have noticed, Kabatsu Sora has managed to pick up another girl. This was actually not part of my original plan when I developed the character, originally it was going to be just him and Anko, but as the story and the characters developed further I realized that I had inadvertently turned him into a fangirl magnet. When I unveiled his storage scroll weapon techniques during the preliminaries I had a face palm as I realized that by doing so I guaranteed that Tenten would be after him (and contrary to popular believe we authors do not control our characters, they control us). Anyways, I absolutely refuse for his situation to get more complicated than it already is, and before anyone asks, NO Sakura is NOT going to get smart and get with Naruto. She may get smart and get with someone actually decent, but Naruto's triad is stable.

Also, on another note, I've had several people ask me both in reviews and PMs to my stories if I would write a true lemon, rather than the stuff that has basically just skimmed around the issue in most of my stories. A heads up to all of you that when I do so it is most likely going to be for the characters in this story, as Naruto Ino and Hinata deserve their loving time.

And with all that said, I bid you adieu, for I finally have a job interview in the morning and its well past my bed time. Please remember to read and review, and hope you all had a good new years (even if it is a bit belated to wish you so).

Jaa ne.

-ZI

**Translations**

**Akumaken** – Devil Swords

**Review Responses – **Yawn (hey, its nearly 5am, so sue me)

Samueltm2 – Thanks man. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

RyouSeiryuu - *grins* Why thank you. I was hoping to emphasize the fact that even if he and Tsubaki do have a technically open relationship, in that he gets to have some nookie if she approves of a girl and often involves threesomes, that he is completely in love with and devoted to the girl. Tsubaki might as well be his reason for living as far as he is concerned, as she is the one who pulled him out of the depression he got sucked into after being taken prisoner by an enemy nation about a year or two before the story took place. Three guesses as to who had hold of them and why Sora has a marking hidden on his neck.

Whoops, said too much. Oh well, some of it will be revealed in the next chapter. Just look forward to the battle between him and Rock Lee, it's going to be epic.

Kontraband – Hey Kontra, howzit hangin?

I don't think you have reviewed it before this either, so thank you for doing so. ^/_\^

Isamu is fun, and I hope you got a laugh out of his behavior in this chapter, and of Sora's revenge on the super pervert. Akane was personally my second favorite of all my OCs for this, and she was created for the express purpose of creating a love interest and a woman who could kick Kiba's ass. I think she came out pretty well, don't you?

Hehe, you ain't seen nothing yet. Naruto and Neji go at it like monsters, Sora and Rock Lee have a most excellent taijutsu battle (and I DO mean battle not fight), and several of the others just completely blow the competition away.

Glad I can be of service. For my more twisted writings look up the author ShadowAI. He just posted the first chapter of a joint project that was created last night. I'll probably actively plug it in my author's notes after we have a few chapters up. Warning, it is twisted.

Jaa ne.

-ZI the Zealous

landofifre – Here's the next chapter. Sorry it's been a while, but I've been busy, traveled to San Diego and back up to the Bay Area, been looking for a job, working on my other projects (including a new solo project and a joint project with ShadowAI) and generally been busy all around. Hope this ten thousand word piece of awesome has you satisfied.

Moonfal – Damn. Oh well, hopefully they will be around for future moments of awesome. Wish me luck man (preferably before 10am PST tomorrow, January Seventh) because I have a job interview and with a little luck I shall soon be employed. And I forget, have you read the first chapter of Desert Fox yet? (that's not next on the cycle, but its after Legacy)

-ZI

Knives91 – This one is pleased. This one did have a nice holiday. This one has been plotting domination with his fellow writers for some time now, but thanks you for the warning.

Hope you enjoyed this ten thousand pound (word) piece of awesome.

Jaa ne.

-ZI the Indestructible

Lygamorte – I tend to prefer relatively canon based ones myself for the most part, but I've had the good fortune to encounter a number of very good AU ones over the past year. You will probably be even more impressed to know that I've been doing this without a beta, and without wasting hours of my time rereading the entire thing in minute detail as I constantly reread it while I write. Thus any errors that slipped in are effectively the few that got in as I wrote in the first place. As to needing a beta-reader, I have been considering getting a beta for some of my stories as it would allow me to get the feedback of another person before posting. If I do this it will delay my writing process a tad as I'll likely end up rewriting chapters more often. Why don't you send me your email in a PM and whether you want to help beta just this, or if you are interested in betaing all of my projects and I'll get back to you.

And I think I may have sent you a PM about this, but no, the cameo I mentioned wasn't Benihime, as that one was actually quite obvious. It was the Swallow, a weapon from Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross that was just one of my favorites.

Jaa ne.

-ZI

rain_alchemist – Mel,

Thanks for reviewing once again. I 'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter, and I hope you aren't disappointed that I really didn't spend much time on the training that was going on in this latest chapter, but if I had we'd be here for the next two months at least before I got to the battles. Well I'm pretty certain most of my readers were surprised by Kabuto getting captured as well, but with an intelligence network to rival Jiraiya's in place, and superior to anything Konoha had obviously, it was no wonder the Pyromancers were tracking the spy. Flare on the other hand is both an enigma and easy to explain. She is actually the most normal of the five Pyromancers, all appearances aside, but her origins, like the other Pyromancers, will sadly remain hidden until it is convenient for the plot to have exposition on their origins. All I will say is that her parents both served Kabatsu Cora, and her mother held her position in the past. And as you can see it was Jiraiya who ended up training him. Anyways, hope you liked the chapter, and wish me luck as I have a job interview at 10:30AM today.

Jaa ne.

-ZI the Indomitable

tcl7189 – Thank you, and happy holidays to you as well. I hope you enjoy this latest chapter.

Shadow65 – Well, a review is a review. *chuckles* Hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	25. Part II: Chapter 25: Changing Fates

Disclaimer: Do I really need to keep reminding you people that I don't own Naruto?

* * *

**A Note From The Author**

Back, after such a long time, but finally here and launching straight into battle. I apologize for the delay, but I explain why in more detail at the end of the chapter. Now, please enjoy the long awaited Part II of Phoenix Rising (not to be confused with Part II of The Phoenix, which Phoenix Rising collectively is Part I of), and please enjoy the music that goes along with it (including the opening and ending themes).

**-Part II Opening (Chapters 25-): Fighting the Darkness by Primal Fear**

**-Part II Ending (Chapters 25-): Suna no Oshiro by Kanon Wakeshima**

**-Naruto vs Neji: Promise Sword of Victory from Fate Stay/Night**

**-Naruto vs Neji, Finale: Storm by Yoshida Brothers**

**-Rock Lee vs Sora, Stage 1: Rising by Yoshida Brothers**

**-Rock Lee vs Sora, Stage 2: Eiyuu Ou from Fate Stay/Night**

**-Rock Lee vs Sora, Stage 3: Emiya - Kenji Kawai Version from Fate Stay/Night**

**-Rock Lee vs Sora, Aftermath: New Dawn from Fate Stay/Night**

**-Sora's Theme: Eiyuu Ou from Fate Stay/Night**

Please check my profile for the full soundtrack listing for Phoenix Rising. It is incomplete and currently under revision, but should give you an idea of the mindset I have for the story.

* * *

**Phoenix Rising Part II: Everything Changes**

Chapter 25: Changing Fates

Neither opponent moved while in the stands above people began to analyze the pair before them silently.

In one corner of the spectator stands Ino and Hinata sat anxiously, watching their boyfriend and lover as he and Neji stared at one another. Next to them sat Uzumaki Kushina and Rin, both anxiously watching Naruto as well. Instinctively they knew he was strong and would do well, but nothing can stop a mother's worry about her child.

In another section of the stands Hyuuga Hiashi sat with his younger daughter Hanabi beside him. His eyes were narrowed as he watched his nephew face off with the demo- no, with the son of the Yondaime.

"Ne, Hinata, is this seat taken?"

Hinata turned and brightened up as soon as she saw Kiba.

"Ah, Kiba-kun. No, go right ahead." She said as she turned back to the match before her.

Kiba sat down in the empty seat at the end of the row and then looked down at where Naruto and Neji were facing off, just in time to hear Neji finally speak.

"I told you before, you are just a loser. It is your destiny to lose." Neji said as finally he shifted into a guard stance.

Naruto clenched his fist and held it out before him.

"I told you before, when we meet in battle, I will destroy you." He said coldly, his anger at what the young man before him had done to one of his Hime beginning to rise once more.

Neji silently activated his Byakugan and focused on Naruto. The blond boy who stood before him was garbed in the same outfit as usual, his red jacket, black pants, and white shirt.

_Those are eyes that show he believes in him self completely. There's absolutely no overconfidence._

Neji slid further into his ready stance, chuckling.

"It's more rewarding to fight against you. When you face the true reality, those eyes will show disappointment. I'm looking forward to seeing those eyes."

"Stop talking so much…" Naruto shot back as he moved into his own ready stance, the flow of his chakra causing the wind in the entire arena to begin to swirl.

In the stands above both Hinata and Ino crossed their fingers. Now was Naruto's chance to shine, and to show how much he had improved from a month of long training.

"Let's begin already!"

"Well, let the first match…BEGIN!" Genma said.

Both boys remained absolutely still, their eyes glued on one another. Neji was in his ready stance while Naruto merely stood straight up, his entire being focused on finding a weakness in Neji's defenses. He knew from Hinata just how good Neji's defenses were, and if was going to have a chance of winning he must find a way to break through. His normal strategy of relying on his purple fusion-chakra and the Kitsune Kata was definitely not going to be enough, but perhaps it could give him the boost to wear Neji down. He just feared what would happen if he pushed to far, how he had nearly been overtaken by the bloodlust back during the mission to the Wave still fresh in his memory.

Finally, after what had seemed like an eternity to the gathered watchers, Naruto crouched and brought his hands together in a cross-shaped seal.

"Now, we begin." He muttered as he closed his eyes and focused his chakra. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

There was a flare of chakra and four puffs of smoke surrounded Naruto. When the smoke cleared there were four copies of Naruto standing around him. With his Byakugan activated Neji realized that these were not regular bunshin, and that the real one was completely indistinguishable from the copies.

In the stands above Izumo and Kotetsu began to chuckle.

"Interesting kid."

"Kage Bunshin is a jutsu at Jounin level. I didn't know he knew that jutsu."

"He truly is his father's son, surprising us like this."

Back in the center of the grand arena Neji smirked.

"But after all, there is only one real body."

"Heh, don't bluff." All four Naruto clones replied.

"Come at me if you want to come." Neji said tauntingly.

Naruto crouched further and held his right arm out at his side.

"Now, I'll show you why you will lose." He called out as the air began to swirl around his hand.

Slowly blue chakra began to appear and swirl inwards, condensing into a rapidly spinning ball around his hand. After about five seconds two of the clones stepped forward and suddenly began striking at the ball, adding the finishing touch to its rapidly spinning form, causing it to fully condense into a tight sphere of dense blue chakra.

"Don't"

"Underestimate"

"Uzumaki"

"Namikaze"

"Naruto!"

Each clone spoke in unison as four of them drew one of Naruto's special tri-pronged kunai and stepped to the side. Naruto finished off the announcement, drawing a kunai in his empty left hand as well.

"Today I prove just how malleable fate is!" Naruto cried out.

The hands and the feet of all five copies of Naruto began to glow with a dark purple chakra, the Rasengan in the original's hand even beginning to take on a purple tint as the five copies all charged.

Two moved in first, but despite their speed Neji merely pushed off their heads and flipped over them, completely dodging their attack.. Two more rushed him from the sides even faster than the first two as he landed and but Neji spun, diverting their blows to the side with simple strikes from his hands. Finally Naruto him self rushed Neji, thrusting his right palm out towards the boy, the swirling sphere darkening to purple.

"RASENGAN!"

Neji bent over backwards at the waist, using all of his flexibility to dodge the blow. Even then he felt the barest edge of it nick his chin as Naruto's arm went past his head. Narrowing his eyes in anger Neji lashed out with an upwards kick as he pulled into a hand stand, launching Naruto back away from him. He continued his motion by pushing off into the air and spinning. As the other four copies of Naruto rushed him at speeds he had not expected, lacking their kunai this time, Neji lashed out with a series of rapid chakra blows, deflecting them away from his spinning form where they all dissolved in bursts of smoke.

As he landed on the ground once again and turned to face the sole remaining Naruto he failed to notice the significance of the five pointed star the kunai the five Naruto's had dropped were now forming.

"You'll become Hokage, eh? I guess it won't be possible with this." Neji said, causing Naruto to narrow his eyes. "I can tell most things with these eyes. Talent is decided when the person is born. In other words, everything is decided when one is born."

Naruto clenched his glowing fists and chuckled.

"And I am about to show you just how wrong that is."

The blond boy looked up at Neji with his eyes ablaze, the irises beginning to slowly darken to purple as his body reacted to his emotions, the hormones beginning to flood his system. He felt the fear of losing control creeping upon him, but he suppressed it as he attempted to regulate the flow of the compounds that would soon send him over the edge.

"Kai." He said simply with his hand held at his side in a seal.

Around Neji the five kunai suddenly vanished in bursts of smoke, revealing five ferally grinning copies of Naruto, each of whose hands and feet began to glow with purple energy moments before they brought their hands together.

"Raiton: Dengeki Enko!" The five copies of Naruto called out in unison as they performed a series of hand seals and raised their arms.

In the stands the entire audience gasped as bursts of lightning leapt from the glowing right hands of all five clones, connecting to the hands of the next copy in sequence. Within less than a second Neji was surrounded by a network of arcing lighting that resembled a five pointed star from above. If he moved at all he would electrocute himself, and his only escapes to the air or the ground were cut off by the original Naruto still being able to freely move.

"Hyuuga Neji, you are a fool who believes that nothing can change. I will show you that proof of change. Your sister, who has suffered just like you, has fought hard to change her fate. Watch her, see her, see what she has become."

In the stands above Hinata's eyes widened as Naruto spoke about her.

"Without her, you would not be standing here on the precipe of defeat. She is strong, stronger than even she yet realizes. This technique exists because she saw potential for it. She worked herself into the ground training until she made it work. And now, I will have my revenge on you for hurting my Hime!"

As Naruto yelled this last part he brought his hands together in a familiar cross-shaped seal.

"Tajuu Kagebunshin no Jutsu." He cried out as chakra pulsed outward from him, flooding the arena as he performed the highly forbidden technique.

Neji glared as nearly four hundred copies of Naruto suddenly appeared, surrounding the web of lightning which seemingly kept him trapped.

"Teme!" They all yelled out as every single one drew a kunai.

As one they held the kunai up while performing hand seals with their left hands.

Neji's eyes widened momentarily as he realized that they were performing the same sequence of seals as the five that currently had him pinned down had. Silently he focused, beginning the expulsion of chakra from his tenketsu in anticipation of beginning his defense.

"Raiton: Dengeki Ami!" Nearly four hundred voices cried out in unison as they raised the now sparking kunai above their heads before leaping into the air.

Neji remained poised as lightning arced through the air, leaping randomly from kunai to kunai across the field of clones.

"Storm of Destruction!" They cried out in unison as they all launched their kunai towards the ground, each clone dissolving as the act of launching the kunai caused them to be struck by lightning.

Neji smirked and began spinning in place. By the time the field of randomly leaping lightning bolts reached his level he had already formed a spinning sphere of chakra. This act disrupted the Dengeki Enko that was keeping him pinned, causing the lightning to backfire and electrocute all five clones. As one they puffed out of existence as the lightning continued to strike against his shield in futility.

Finally, after nearly thirty seconds of arcing around the field, the brightness of the flashes practically blinding the onlookers, the lightning ceased. Neji stopped spinning with a smirk and looked directly at Naruto.

Naruto stood from where a lucky hit by a deflected lightning bolt had tossed him. He growled as he stood up and dusted himself off.

_Since when is the branch family taught the Kaiten?_

"Why you…it's not going to be that easy!" Naruto growled as he twirled a pair of tri-tipped kunai before launching them to either side of Neji.

Neji smirked and struck out, stabbing each kunai is it passed. Sure enough, both kunai disappeared in puffs of smoke.

"Orrraaaa!" Naruto cried as he attempted to reach Neji in time while he was distracted, but to no avail. Despite Naruto's chakra enhanced speed it just wasn't enough.

As Naruto attempted to lash out with a punch aimed straight for Neji's face the older boy smirked and began spinning again, the expelled and spun chakra blocking Naruto's blow and sending the boy flying away, nearly-shredding his jacket in the process. As the blond teenager slowly got back to his feet he was beginning to shake. He could feel the compounds beginning to latch onto receptors in his brain, his muscles, his nervous system, and the fear began to grip him again; the fear of losing all control.

_Not yet…just a little more time…I just need a little more time…_

_**You don't have anymore, Kit.**_ Kyuubi chuckled.

"I'll end it here." Neji said from his spot in the middle of the crater his repeated Kaiten had carved out of the earth. "You're within the field of my Hakke."

Naruto blinked in confusion as he got fully to his feet.

_Hakke?_

Neji held his arms out to the side before sliding his right foot back, moving his arms straight before him at an angle.

"Jyuu-kenpou."

The dark-haired Hyuuga slid his left leg forward, extending his arms palm up until they formed an almost straight line with his shoulder, the right higher than the left. He was oriented almost perfectly along that line to Naruto and had his eyes focused on him.

"Sixty Four Point Hakke!"

In the stands above Hiashi lent forward in surprise.

"That stance…could it be…"

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he tried to figure out what was coming up. Suddenly Neji lent into the air towards him.

"Commencing."

Neji spun, his hands glowing with a blue light as he spun and struck, breaking through Naruto's guard.

"Two." He said, striking Naruto with both hands, hitting two points on his body.

"Four." He continued his assault, striking four times at a faster pace.

"Eight." His speed increased further as he struck again.

"Sixteen." Neji's hands became a blur.

"Thirty-two." Hinata and Ino were holding their breath. Hinata was scared as despite all his power her lover had apparently been beaten.

"Sixty-four." As Neji moved faster than anyone could see Naruto was flung away with a cry of pain.

The blond shinobi struggled to get on his feet, even as his tenketsu burned from being sealed.

"With all sixty-four tenketsu in your body sealed, you won't even be able to stand up." Neji said with an air of superiority.

"Kuso…" Naruto muttered as he struggled not only to get up, but to keep the bloodlust in check. Without his chakra to burn the compounds out of his blood the rate it was coming on had increased exponentially, and as much as he hated Neji for what he had done to Hinata, he was certain that if he killed the boy his lover would hate him.

"Ashamed of yourself yet? Standing before absolute power and knowing your own weakness. To think anything can be done if you work hard enough is just a fantasy."

In the stands above Sakura was chuckling to her self.

_See Ino, now you'll see. Sasuke-kun could have won, but your Naruto just isn't as good. You'll see that you should just come back to Sasuke-kun._

Naruto looked up towards Neji's feet, his vision slightly blurry.

"Kuso…" He muttered softly as he got to his feet again, breathing heavily.

"Neji…" He said softly. "I really…really suck at quitting anything…and I still need to take you down."

"No way…" Neji said, completely shocked that Naruto could even stand.

"I know all about the main and branch families, Neji. I know all about the pain you must have felt, having your dad be killed like that. But that gives you no right to decide what is and isn't destined to happen." Naruto said, causing Neji to glare in anger.

"You are hopeless." Neji said, suddenly rushing forward in preparation of striking Naruto with a palm strike to finish the weakened boy off.

In the stands above most people watched in horror as Naruto was struck and sent flying.

All but one.

_So, now the real battle begins. Naruto-kun, show me, just what power lies buried within you. Show me how brightly the will of fire burns. Show me how strongly the storm blows._

Kabatsu Cora smirked from her position in the crowd. Now, to see how the young Gouzenkaze fared when pushed to his utter limits. Would the power within him rise, or was it yet dormant within the blond boy?

As Neji turned to walk away he heard an odd sound behind him. He turned to surprisingly find Naruto standing, his arms dangling at his sides as he stared at the ground and breathed heavily. His entire body seemed to be shaking from the effort of standing up.

"I cannot lose here." Naruto said. "Not to a bastard who is such a coward that he blames everything on fate and other crap."

_Naruto…_ Ino thought, watching her lover stand. She was torn between desire to see him win and desire to protect him from harm, just as he always sought to protect her and Hinata.

"You know nothing. Don't lecture me. People are born carrying an unchangeable fate." Neji replied coldly, anger barely restrained in his voice as he remembered something his father had once told him. "To carry a seal that can never be removed. A guy like you would never understand."

Silently Naruto himself remembered back to the one time he had been lost alone in Konoha, the day he had been forced to learn the truth of his father's death, to learn of what he contained within himself, and why no one in town ever did anything but hate him.

"No…I understand, better than anyone else ever could." Naruto said as he looked up. "So, what about it? "

_This guy?_ Neji thought in surprise.

"Stop acting cool. You're not the only special guy here. Hinata…was suffering the same as you. She is from the head family, but she tried her best to change herself because no one would acknowledge her existence. That's the determination she had, and she fought you even after she was injured. That goes for you as well. The branch family is supposed to protect the head family, yet you did that to Hinata when it was only an exam. You were trying hard to fight against fate, weren't you?"

"Heh. All sixty-four of your tenketsu are closed. How are you going to fight now? You won't be able to use your chakra for a while…"

Genma stood nearby, looking between the two boys. He was ready to call the match since it appeared to be so close to ending.

"In the end you are going to follow the same fate as Hinata-sama."

"Shut up!" Naruto cried. "Stop talking as if you know everything with that Byakugan of yours!"

"Then show me if what you say is true." Neji challenged.

"Sure, I'll beat you and prove it."

_Damn it. Damn it. Even when I say that, I feel no chakra inside me._

Suddenly Naruto stiffened up as Kyuubi's voice broke through his thoughts.

_**Kit…now is the time. You can control it. You just need to have faith in your self, faith in your training. You are not me, you are you. You can control the change. The power is yours and yours alone to use from now on. The transformation…is complete.**_

Slowly Naruto's breathing began to steady as he reached within himself, grabbing hold of the power that was his and drawing on it to control the change, confident like never before. No, he would no longer fear that power, the bloodlust. It couldn't control him any longer…it would OBEY HIM!

"The chatting ends here. Examiner, I intend to kill him." Neji said.

"Heh." Naruto said as he brought his hands together in a single seal, one shown to him by the Kyuubi.

"Raaaaa!" He cried as he began to focus, on every time he had fallen and gotten back up; on every time his friend Rock Lee had gotten back up after a defeat in training; on every time he watched one of his Himes strive harder.

"Heh. Why do you fight against your fate that hard?" Neji asked.

"Because…" Naruto bit out. "I must prove my existence."

In the competitor's balcony Gaara's eyes widened in surprise at Naruto's words.

Neji activated his Byakugan as Naruto crouched down, bringing his arms to his sides and clenching his fists.

"RAAAAAAAR!" Naruto cried as the air around him suddenly began to swirl as blood red chakra began to flare out of him.

Within his blood volatile chemicals were flowing freely, binding with receptors in his system as Neji watched in fear as a strange red chakra suddenly spiraled out of Naruto, surrounding him like fire as visible flares of chakra surrounded him.

In the stands many of the older shinobi were staring in shock as the Kyuubi's chakra began to pour out of Naruto, especially when it momentarily formed the image of a fox head above Naruto's own.

Gaara watched wide-eyed at the power that the blond boy was now exerting.

Arashi stood from where he was sitting beside Tsubaki, staring in awe.

Sora, Ren, and Akane all smiled, staring down at the boy.

_That's it, cousin. Draw on the power that is yours by right…OUR RIGHT AS JINCHURIKI!_ Sora's thought was joined by a deep bass roar.

"AAAAAAAAAA!" Naruto called out as the chakra flared out of him in long flares.

"Let's begin." He said, looking up at Neji. His eyes were pure blue, no sign of the transformation normally associated with him drawing on the Kyuubi's power.

_This chakra…it's wrapping around him…what is that? Is it really chakra?_

Neji watched in fear as the chakra condensed around Naruto, encircling him and covering him in a flare of red flaming chakra as he clenched his fists.

_What an enormous power. I feel stronger…than any time I've ever drawn on Kyuubi before._

Naruto focused his eyes on Neji as the older boy got into a defensive stance. Suddenly Naruto completely vanished and Neji frantically searched for him using his Byakugan. The older boy barely had time to react as Naruto suddenly appeared in the air above him, lashing out with over twenty of his special kunai in a matter of a few seconds. Neji used a Kaiten to deflect them, following Naruto's path and lashing out with a flow of shuriken as the boy attempted to attack him from above.

SWISH

Neji watched in surprise as Naruto suddenly disappeared again in a burst of wind, dodging his thrown shuriken in midair.

"What?"

_His speed increased? What in the world is going on?_

In the stands Kabatsu Cora's smirk deepened.

_That's it, little Gouzenkaze, let the wind do your bidding. Soon it shall be as natural to you as breathing._

Neji leapt to the side and drew a kunai as Naruto appeared beside him in another burst of wind and lashed out with a kick that pushed Neji back with a blast of air. The pair threw their kunai as they leapt apart, the two blades colliding perfectly and deflecting away from one another. Together they leapt and caught the blades, striking at one another as they passed. They both landed on the ground facing each other again, Neji staring at Naruto with fear and surprise growing in his heart.

"You…are confident about close combat, right?" Naruto asked with a chuckle that caused Neji's eyes to widen.

Suddenly Naruto sped forward, his speed and the chakra around him tearing up the ground as he passed, a tunnel of wind swirling behind him. As Naruto approached Neji attempted to reaffirm his beliefs to him self that fate was unchangeable. He brought a kunai up in a guard as Naruto approached yelling to him as he discarded the kunai he was holding and brought his arm to his side with the palm open.

"I don't know about the Hyuuga's fate of hatred, but if you think it's impossible then don't do anything!"

Neji began to start the Kaiten in fear.

"After I become Hokage…" Naruto said as the chakra in his hand suddenly spun and condensed into a swirling red ball. The audience watched in awe as Naruto struck at Neji with the technique and the very wind itself formed a massive vortex around him. "I'll change the Hyuuga for you!"

Naruto cried this last bit out as his Kitsune Rasengan collided with Neji's kunai in the field of the Kaiten. Their colliding energies remained stable for a moment before the entire arena was filled with smoke as a massive explosion of chakra sent the pair flying away from one another to create two massive craters in the ground.

Hinata and Ino watched in fear as they waited frantically to see if Naruto would arise. Slowly a hand reached out of one of the holes and Hyuuga Neji crawled out, coughing a little as he did so.

On the competitor's balcony Sora smirked as Neji stumbled forth to look at where Naruto unconscious in his crater.

_It's not over yet._

"Sorry Naruto, but this is reality."

Neji was about to say something else when he felt a chakra flare around him. The poor boy didn't stand a chance as a glowing red fist surrounded by a swirl of wind emerged from the ground below as Naruto came exploding forth. As Neji fell back, completely unable to move, Naruto breathed heavily and the red aura around him began to fade, a smile forming on his face.

Slowly Naruto walked over to stand over Neji, the copy of him the crater vanishing in a puff of smoke in answer to Neji's unspoken question.

"You even made a Kage Bunshin in that situation?" Neji coughed from where he was lying prone on the ground. "Your favorite technique, ne? I was careless."

"When I was younger, my mom would give me the Academy graduation exam to test my progress. No matter how hard I worked, no matter how hard I trained, there was one technique that I could never master. Not even today can I use it properly. The Bunshin no Jutsu was the one technique that forever eluded me. So the day I discovered a Bunshin technique that I could master, I changed my own fate. That is why I use the jutsu so much, as a reminder that I have the power to shape my own destiny." Naruto looked up and smiled as a bird took off from a nearby tree. "So stop complaining about fate and saying how it can't be changed. I am the proof that it can."

Naruto reached his open fist towards the bird and closed it, as if trying to catch a hold of the free bird and for a moment the air around him swirled gently.

"You and I are the same, both given unfair lots in life. All you need is to see that you can change your fate, and nothing else will ever matter."

Genma smiled around his toothpick and raised his hand.

"Winner, Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto."

Around the arena cheers went up as Naruto looked up in confusion. When he realized that everyone was cheering for him he smiled and pumped his hands in the air, looking straight towards where his family was sitting as he faintly heard both of his Hime cheering for him over the clapping. All these people, people who at best avoided him and at worst glared at him, were acknowledging his existence.

In the stands Sakura was grudgingly admitting that maybe Ino had made the right choice in choosing Naruto when she heard a pair of girls behind her talking. Turning her head she caught sight of a girl who was probably a civilian sitting next to a kunoichi who was probably only a year or two older than Sakura her self.

"He's pretty good."

"Yeah, he's pretty strong."

"And he's pretty cute too."

Sakura looked back down and watched Naruto as he helped a pair of medic nins get Neji off the field, beginning to wonder if she was right to stay so focused on Sasuke-kun, when there were people like Naruto out there. Sakura finally had to admit to her self, maybe it was her chasing after Sasuke that had left her so weak. Maybe Ino had been right all along.

On the other side of the arena Sora smiled down as the blond shinobi exited the field.

"Well played, Naruto. Well played indeed. It would appear that you are finally beginning to harness the power within you."

Those in the balcony who did not know of Naruto's tenant or his hidden ancestry turned to look at Sora in confusion as the tall red-head turned and walked out of the balcony. Everyone wondered where he was going when Rock Lee suddenly brightened up.

"Yosh! This means that my match is next!" The excitable genin exclaimed, nearly shattering the eardrums of those standing near him as he raced off down the stairs after his opponent.

Ren smiled at the boy's antics while Akane leant against the railing, practically drooling in anticipation at the match to come. She was after all a primarily close combat fighter. To her, legendary taijutsu matches were near orgasmic to watch.

In the spectator section five women of varying ages who were scattered through the crowd smiled faintly.

"Sora…" All but one of them said softly as the red-haired shinobi stepped out into the sunlight, followed almost immediately by a green blur.

"Brat…" The fifth woman said with a smile around her cigarette.

In the center of the arena Sora stood proudly, his red hair and black and red armor glinting in the sunlight, the golden sigil of the dragon and the phoenix practically glowing. Near to him Rock Lee was jumping around excitedly, shouting things about the power of youth. His green outfit and bright orange leg warmers very nearly blinded the watching audience before Genma stepped forward and the teenager reeled in his enthusiasm.

"The next match is about to begin." Genma said loudly to the waiting crowd. "This match will be between Rock Lee of Konohagakure and Kabatsu Sora of Nagareboshigakure."

The crowd began to cheer as the two shinobi took their positions opposite one another, and then surprisingly bowed low from the waist.

"It is an honor to meet in battle with one such as your self, Rock Lee. As such, I have decided to swear off all ninjutsu in our battle, save one." Sora said as he returned to a standing position.

"Yosh! Then this will be a battle where we can truly show how our power of youth shines through!" Lee replied to the older man.

Sora just chuckled as he stood straight up, his arms crossed before him.

"Just give me a chance to use my one jutsu before we begin. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed by the effect it has on the arena." Sora said with a smirk, fire beginning to rise behind his eyes and in his veins.

"Yosh!" Lee said as Genma stepped up between them.

"And ready…BEGIN!" He said.

Rock Lee merely stood waiting as he motioned for Sora to make his move. Sora smiled and reached up, grabbing the wrapping of the sword on his back.

"Akumaken, Kai." He spoke softly and suddenly the black wrapping of his sword was swirling around him, causing wind to spiral around the battlefield.

Underneath the black wrapping the blade was a revealed to be the same glossy black as when he had unveiled it in the preliminaries. However, the engravings on the blade as Sora swung the blade up and prepared to stab it into the ground were different. The kanji had changed and the image engraved upon it was no longer that of a dragon and phoenix in battle, but merely a phoenix with flames surrounding it. The edge also glinted dangerously, reminding Lee of gemstones he had seen on jewelry before.

"Shinden wo Sentou!" Sora said loudly as he focused chakra into the blade.

The blade glowed with a brilliant white light before Sora stabbed it into the ground. The audience watched in awe as the blade seemed to melt into the ground until all that remained sticking out was the large black-wrapped handle. Suddenly there was a pulse of chakra and a flash of white chakra flooded the entire arena. The ground began to shake for a moment before something very odd happened.

Genma backed up against the wall of the arena as all around Sora and Lee large gray stones several feet in diameter began to rise out of the ground. Each one was comprised of multiple flat hexagonal sides, each of which had a seal inscribed upon it. Literally hundreds of these stones were rising out of the ground and filling the air in the arena, rising to various heights from a few feet to tens of meters into the air. Finally with a flash of white the stones stopped, but all who were watching could feel the way the arena was now radiating power. Rock Lee looked from the stones to where Sora was now backing up and dropping into a taijutsu ready stance.

"Now that our arena is prepared, we can go all out. Show me, Lee, show me the flames of your youth!" Sora cried as he suddenly blurred and struck forwards, the air around his arms literally swirling with the speed of his punch.

Rock Lee was grinning widely as he dodged to the side and flipped away. Sora growled and chased after the green-clad genin, his eyes ablaze and a massive smile on his face. The audience watched on in awe as the pair began to exchange blows at amazing speeds, almost as fast as Naruto had been in his match while he had been using that red chakra cloak.

Neither one managed to actually land a direct blow for over two minutes of this exchange until finally Sora changed his fighting style. Whereas before he had been fighting Lee with a style very similar to his own now Sora was suddenly fighting in a much more fluid style, not all too dissimilar from the style used by the Hyuuga, that involved a lot more redirection. Lee was caught off guard by the sudden switch and was sent rolling across the ground as Sora suddenly deflected his latest strike down and landed an open palm blow on Lee's shoulder increasing his momentum.

As the green clad boy rolled to his feet he was forced to dodge a series of rapid strikes as Sora rushed him, pressing his advantage. He was now striking with his hands held like blades, attempting to get a strike in past Lee's defenses. Lee, fearing rightly that this was not just a physical strike, was dodging and deflecting Sora's blows while looking for a counterattack rather than blocking. Finally he got his opening, and after deflecting two of Sora's strikes, putting the older man off balance, Lee dropped towards the ground and spun, his leg lashing out and catching Sora in the knee.

Lee's counterattack caused Sora to flip into the air, surprise evident on his face as the younger teenager moved faster than anybody could see and lashed out with a second kick that collided with Sora's sternum, causing him to spit up blood as he collided with the ground.

Lee leapt away back into a guard stance. Many of the watchers wondered why he hadn't pressed the advantage when they saw Sora suddenly flip himself back onto his feet, a grin splitting his face.

"Now things are getting interesting." He said with a chuckle. "What style was that you just used there?"

Lee chuckled.

"The style taught to me by my sensei! It is the style that allows my flames of youth to burn brightly!"

Sora smirked as he reached up to wipe some blood off of his lip.

"Guess I better kick it up a notch then."

Suddenly he blurred, reappearing before Rock Lee as he plunged his hand palm first into Lee's stomach.

"Oomph"

Lee went flying backwards until he collided with one of the floating stones, rolling over it and landing shakily on his feet. He barely had time to bring his arms into an x-block before Sora caught up to him and lashed out with a kick that caused Lee to skid almost all the way to the wall.

When Lee finally ceased sliding and looked up he couldn't see Sora anywhere.

"I'm sorry Lee, but if that is the best you have then I am going to end this now." Sora's voice rang out.

Lee looked around frantically, finally finding his opponent standing on top of one of the floating stones on the other side of the field.

As Lee watched Sora reached up and unclasped his armor from his shoulders. Silently the older man removed the front and back pieces, letting them fall from him towards the ground. As the pieces were making their descent he sat and unhooked the guards on his forearms and his lower legs, lifting them and letting them drop as well. As he let them go from his hands a massive shockwave shook the arena, and below the stone he stood on two massive craters formed throwing dust up into the air.

Lee's eyes widened in shock as the dust was added to by a secondary set of impacts seconds later.

When the dust finally settled Lee could see Sora wearing only his boots, pants, and his red and black jacket cracking his neck as he stretched out his arms and legs, seemingly testing his limbs out after removing his weights. In the stands many teenage girls and young women blushed or began to bleed from the nose at the sight of Sora's well-toned body through his tight-fitting jacket.

"I sincerely hope you have something up your sleeve, or else this match is already decided. It's been a while since I removed my weights and suppressors in combat, so it will be a thrill to see how much speed I've gained." Sora said as he cracked his neck.

_Come on, Lee. Show me what you've got._

Lee looked up with a blank look on his face for several moments longer before grinning and pumping his fists at his side.

"Yosh!"

Lee moved and the audience was hard pressed to follow the green and orange blur as it bounded through the stones up into the air until it was standing on a stone looking across at Sora.

"Gai sensei, I'm sorry. I know you said only to use these abilities when defending many precious people, but I owe my friend my full power."

Lee sat down and slid off his fuzzy orange leg warmers, surprising the audience once again. He unhooked the two bands of weights from around his legs and stood up, letting them drop from his side. When they hit the ground the impact they made left craters almost as big as Sora's had been.

Sora raised an eyebrow as Lee stood back up.

"Well well, looks like I might actually have a challenge after all." The red-haired young man said with a grin as he slid into a ready stance, one hand back and behind his head, the other in front with the fingers extended. He motioned for Lee to make the first move. "Bring it."

"Yosh!" Lee exclaimed before he suddenly blurred out of existence.

Next thing anyone saw was Sora flying through the air from the force from Lee's kick before his feet connected with another of the floating rocks and he too disappeared.

The audience gasped as a black blur began to speed through the arena, bounding from rock to rock. Within a matter of seconds the blur had moved towards the center and through the space occupied by Rock Lee mere moments before. Lee however had reacted by dodging and becoming a blur himself, this time of green. The audience watched on in awe as the pair of genin moved at speeds that could rival most Jounins.

Suddenly a loud crack echoed through the arena as Lee and Sora appeared in mid-air, their legs pressed against each other as their kicks had collided and the two began to attack one another with a variety of punches and kicks as they dropped towards the ground below. Just as they were about to hit the ground the two became blurs again, bounding around the arena so fast that their passage was striking up dust and causing wind to begin to swirl wildly around the arena. More than one spectator had to grasp at their heads to keep their hats in place.

In the stands Tenten sat near Tsubaki and Arashi, both of whom were out of their seats cheering their lungs out for their friend.

_Sora is actually keeping up with Lee! This is amazing!_

Next to Tenten, Arashi was cheering loudly for his teammate, excited to see him unleashing his speed for the first time in a long while, and Tsubaki was cheering with all her might, just proud that the magnificent example of a shinobi currently battling against Rock Lee was hers.

As the two blurs continued to speed around the arena, really only visible when they periodically met in spectacular display of aerial acrobatics and combat, the audience just stared in awe. More than one of the hidden examiners who would be determining who received a promotion to Chunin after the exam were staring in pure awe at the speed and ability being displayed before them. Both boys' speed was low Jounin level, at least, and they were engaged in a vicious and elegant dance of fists and feet that put any other taijutsu match they had ever seen to shame. Add to that they were maintaining such speeds almost constantly and it spoke to their level of prowess.

After nearly five minutes of this exchange Sora and Rock Lee finally came to a stop. Both of them were standing in the air, each balancing on one of the floating stones as they stared across the arena at one another. They were bloody, bruised, and breathing heavily, but they had the identical idiotic grins plastered on their faces. The audience watched on with baited breath as the two combatants caught theirs.

"Well, I have to say my youthful rival, that this was a match to remember. But I am afraid that it is now over." Lee said as he smiled apologetically across at Sora.

"Why, because you are intending to open the Hachimon?" Sora asked, drawing a surprised look from Lee. "What? It's no secret that your sensei can open the gates, so there was always the possibility that he may have taught you."

"You knew this was a possibility, and yet you still handicapped yourself in your match against me? Why would you guarantee your own defeat?" Lee asked in confusion as he began to gather his focus for opening the gates.

_**It is time…open the door, allow the beast to flow forth. Embrace my power!**_

"Because," Sora said, standing up straight and taking a deep breath, the muscles along his arms and chest under his shirt rippling as he clenched his fists at his side. "I have something that allows me to rival the gates."

Sora opened his eye and looked directly across as Lee. Lee's breath almost left him as he saw the changes in Sora's eyes. They had gone from their usual dichromatic coloration to turning almost pitch black. The only color visible was a thin red ring and the gold triangles circling his now blue pupil.

"Ten no Juin." He said simply. "Activate."

_**The Gate is opened…**_

Rock Lee watched in awe and fear as Sora's face suddenly became a rictus of pain as he reached up and grabbed his neck. The red-haired shinobi dropped to one knee, barely remaining on the large stone.

In the Kage box the Kazekage barely managed to keep from smirking.

_Yes, use that. Once you are in its power I can take control of you from here and use your power to aid in my plans._

The Hokage on the other hand nearly dropped his pipe as he stared in shock at what he was seeing.

_That…that's Orochimaru's Cursed Seal of Heaven. But why does a Nagareboshi shinobi possess that forbidden power? Could they be aligned with Orochimaru?_

Sarutobi Hiruzen turned his head to gaze across the arena at where the foreign dignitaries were sitting. He could see Kabatsu Cora with her hood off standing behind the Nagareboshi delegation, and she was smiling. Suddenly, almost as if she had sensed him watching her (which Hiruzen had to admit was a definite possibility), Cora turned her gaze to look him directly in the eye. Even across the distance Sarutobi got her message.

_Watch._

"Watch, Lee, and witness what is to come, for you are the first opponent to ever make me reveal this power in its full form." Sora grunted out as the gold and silver marks on his face began to glow red, as did a strange mark on his neck that Lee saw was shaped like three tomoe in a spiral. Suddenly his chakra spiked, flaring around him in a haze of purple and black that radiated a powerful unnaturalness that disturbed many of the watching spectators.

_**And we are as one…**_

Slowly the red marks began to grow, flowing to cover all of Sora's exposed body as the boy began to growl in pain. As they reached his hair Lee watched as Sora's hair began to turn a dark purple and black. He watched in a mixture of fear and anticipation as the glowing power finished covering Sora, at which point the once red-haired boy let out a deep primal scream as his body began to shift. His back was nearly ripped open as a pair of large black crystalline spikes protruded from the back of his shoulders. His head began to shift grotesquely, his jaw projecting as his teeth grew long and sharp, black bony protrusions growing out of the sides of his head and from over his eyes.

The audience watched on in horrified fascination as the transformation continued. Sora slowly stood, his hands revealed to have grown slightly larger and appearing to be plated in armor that led to his long black talons. His hair had grown to several times its length and was now an unruly black and purple spiked mess that was hanging down his back. His skin had turned almost completely black as the red glow receded and his head had turned reptilian. His black eyes stared out from under a pair of horns and five long horns projected rearward from the side of his head, curved back towards an invisible point behind his head. Finally the spines on his back had fully grown to become two massive shards of black obsidian that glinted in the sunlight.

Sora brought one hand up and clenched his fist, his talons glinting dangerously.

"**Now, Lee, open the gates, and let us end this match like men. In glorious battle!**" Sora roared out, his voice strange with a deep base overtone to it.

"Yosh!" Lee said as he brought his arms to his side and clenched his fists, focusing hard on what he was about to do. "To the finish my friend, we will give it our all!"

In the Kage box the Kazekage carefully obscured his right hand and formed a single seal, intending to cause pain to the rogue who dared to use his gifts without serving him. However, when he channeled his chakra nothing happened.

_What? Impossible! Nothing can prevent me from activating the seal!_

Even as he said this the Kazekage was forced to use all of his self-control to not let his surprise become apparent as his mind was suddenly filled with the image of a pair of purple reptilian eyes glaring at him out of a dark cloud and the ear-shattering bass roar that echoed through his mind. And then, as suddenly as it appeared, the image vanished, leaving the Kazekage shaken.

Lee crossed his arms before his face as he began to focus on opening the gates. Suddenly the air around Lee began to blur with power, chunks rising off the rock he was standing on by the force of the chakra. Slowly the intensity increased and Lee's skin began to darken to red, veins standing out all over his face as his eyes turned white and blue chakra began to swirl around his body. Finally he snapped his arms down to his side, a sphere of visible blue chakra forming around him in the intensity of his release.

"Seimon, Open!"

Sora chuckled and tightened his stance, the purple chakra around him condensing tightly around his body as Rock Lee continued to power up, the blue energy around him forming a spiral as a bright green chakra aura began to form around his body.

In the stands Maito Gai watched on in pride as his prized student crouched and disappeared once again. The next thing anyone saw Sora was leaping into the air, a blur of black and purple, and the nigh-indestructible rock he had been standing on had dissolved into a cloud of dust from Rock Lee's attack.

"**Hahahahahaha! YES! THIS IS WHAT I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR!**" Sora roared as he spun and lashed out with a punch, a shockwave forming in the air as his fist met Lee's.

Sora was thrown back while Lee blurred away again, speeding around and striking Sora from behind. Even as the blows rained down upon him the black figure of Sora continued to laugh.

"**This! This feeling! This is what I have been looking for!**"

Sora roared a reptilian cry as he spun and barely managed to intercept Lee's next strike, catching his fist in his over-sized clawed hand.

"**Jigoku no Nigirikobushi.**" Sora said, his face nearly splitting with a psychotic grin, his eyes wide and the triangles spinning rapidly.

Sora's hand clenched and Lee cried out in pain before vanishing. The green-charged boy appeared behind Sora and lashed out with a powerful kick which sent the still grinning monstrosity that was Sora plummeting towards the ground, a trail of purple chakra glowing behind him.

"Tomon, Open!" Lee cried as he blurred out of sight again.

In the competitors' balcony Gaara was practically crushing the metal of the railing in his grip, his eyes wide as he stared with a psychotic look on his face at the battle before him. Everyone else on the balcony had moved away from him and were all staring at the battle in shock as well. The only one's not surprised by the battle were Akane and Nobu, both of whom had contemplative looks on their faces, and Ren, who was outright cheering for Sora to win.

In a flash Lee appeared falling head first towards the ground like Sora, but the bandages he had wrapped around his arms were loose. Before Sora could spin to face him the green-clad boy lashed out with the bandages and wrapped them around Sora, binding his arms against his body. Sora continued to laugh maniacally as Lee rose above him and then descended, his cocked arm slamming into Sora's stomach with so much force that it doubled his speed mere moments before he collided with the ground.

"Ura Renge!" Lee's voice could be heard echoing as the blow struck, moments before the collision through up a huge cloud of dust the covered almost the entire arena.

Moments later a de-powered Lee was sent spinning out of the cloud, rolling until he collided with the edge of the arena. Slowly the cloud began to settle and collapse, revealing a crater in the center of the arena…and the crouched form of Kabatsu Sora, or at least what they assumed was Sora. The figure appeared to be surrounded by a two-segmented obsidian shell, much like the carapace of an insect. The shining shell was pitted and cracked, and the figure below seemed to be shuddering.

"**HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**" The figure suddenly stood its laughter loud and dark. Sora was revealed under the shell as the obsidian condensed and reformed two spikes lying against his back. "**This power, it is amazing! Even the Tomon cannot defeat me!**"

Sora continued to laugh psychotically as Lee struggled to stand, shock that his opponent had managed to remain conscious after he used the Ura Renge on them evident on his face. In the stands Gai stared in shock that his prized student's ultimate attack had failed.

_He…he somehow used the spines on his back to absorb the impact? Just what is he?_

In the Kage's box the Hokage was thinking the same thing, while the Kazekage was barely containing his rage that one of his experiments had somehow circumvented his control.

Sakura sat in shock. Rock Lee was annoying, and had been flirting with her since the moment they met, but, he was so amazing. He and this Sora person had battled at a level she had never even thought possible, and yet Lee's power still wasn't enough.

Still laughing, Sora turned and began to stalk towards where Lee was struggling to remain standing, his eyes fixated on the green-clothed Konoha genin. As he moved the obsidian on his back began to flow together and down his body, beginning to form a long black tail as Sora's body hunched over more, his reptilian face grinning.

"**Thank you, Lee. It was an excellent battle, one worthy of being recorded for the ages to remember. But I am sorry, for I must end things now.**"

Lee's eyes widened as Sora approached him, the young man stopping just a few feet in front of him. The two stood apart from one another, Sora no longer laughing as the two shared a moment. The entire arena was silent for a long moment, anticipation and worry in their hearts in equal measure. Finally, it was Lee who spoke again.

"I am sorry, but I cannot give up. I must prove that one can be a capable shinobi even if all they have is taijutsu. That is my nindo." Lee said with regret in his voice.

Sora closed his eyes and smiled, a true smile not the sadistic bestial grin he had been maintaining since his transformation, and then his decidedly bestial form began to recede. The chakra around him died off and the darkness that covered him retreated. His hair returned to its original bright red coloring, albeit still long, and his hands returned to normal. The glowing red marks receded until all that was left was three black tomoe around his neck and the thin gold and silver lines etched into his face. Finally, he opened his eyes, revealing their normal red and blue dichromatic state.

"You have already done that in spades, my friend. If I had not had the defensive capabilities of my Ten no Juin state, you would almost certainly have won."

The pair stood there, regarding one another for several long moments before Sora sighed.

"I understand, my friend."

Sora blurred out of existence and appeared behind Lee, hanging upside down from the wall. Before anyone knew what had happened the red-haired man struck the back of Lee's neck with one finger and the dark-haired boy collapsed into unconsciousness. As Genma approached to confirm that Lee was in fact unconscious Sora flipped back to the ground and looked up at the sun streaming from above as he walked slowly over to where his sword's handle was still sticking out of the ground.

"It was a beautiful day for our match, Lee-kun. It was indeed glorious."

Sora bent and grabbed the long handle of his blade, focusing his chakra as he did so. As the blade began to slowly withdraw from the ground the arena began to swirl with glowing white chakra and each of the floating geometric rocks began to spiral in towards a central point over Sora's head. Rapidly that point became a glowing sphere of white light until finally there was a brilliant flash and the entire sphere shot to the ground in front of Sora.

As the light cleared it revealed Sora with his black-wrapped blade once again securely strapped to his back facing a statue several times larger than life size.

"Thank you." Sora said with a smile as he turned away from the statue and walked towards the craters where he had discarded his armor. Behind him the statue of Rock Lee, his hand held forth in a thumbs up as he smiled and the brilliant white stone of his teeth glinting in the sunlight, looked on.

In the stands everyone was still silent in awe at what had happened until someone began a slow clap. This clap grew rapidly into a massive cheering so loud that almost no one heard Genma confirm Kabatsu Sora as the victor of the match. Still smiling, Sora looked up into the stands and blew a kiss to Tsubaki before he turned and walked out of the arena, heading for the competitor's balcony once again. On his way up the stairs he heard the muffled announcement that the next match between Uchiha Sasuke and Sabaku no Gaara would be delayed until after the other preliminary matches had been completed, but he paid it no mind. He had fought a worthy opponent, and he was charged from the experience.

As he walked onto the balcony he smiled at Nobu as the cobalt-blue haired teenager walked past, followed by the lazy Konoha shinobi Shikamaru. Surprisingly the boy shot Sora a glare, but as Sora was already past him he didn't see it. As Shikamaru began to walk down the stairs to the arena he had his hands in his pockets and a single thought on his mind.

_If I can show that girl how skilled I am with my shadows today, maybe I'll be able to catch her interest. *sigh* This is so troublesome._

As Shikamaru emerged into the brightly lit arena he caught sight of a squad of Chunin attempting to use a Doton jutsu to move the statue of Rock Lee out of the arena. From the argument he could hear going on apparently they had merely wanted to destroy it to get rid of it, but Rock Lee's sensei had intervened, ordering the Chunin to instead transport the statue to his house. Shikamaru shook his head and muttered his catchphrase again as he made his way to stand across from Nobu, eyeing the positions of the many craters that now littered he arena as he did so. Knowing the minute details of the terrain could very well make the difference between victory and defeat in this match.

* * *

AN: Thus begins the second part of Phoenix Rising, again not to be confused with Part 2 of "The Phoenix", the overarching story of which Phoenix Rising is but the first piece, and the change in soundtrack between it and Part 1 should give you hints to as the dark storm clouds on the horizon for our favorite characters. Please, if you haven't already, listen to the tracks listed in the soundtrack and enjoy. They were chosen specifically to carry the scenes off properly.

First off, there are a number of reasons the Neji fight went the way it did, amongst them the simple fact that even with the changes I've made to him, Naruto was not ready to fight him without mastering the Kyuubi's chakra. If you have a problem with that fight mirroring canon then I kindly ask you keep your thoughts to yourself, as the fight occurred the way it did for a reason. That and the fight existed to set up stuff, like Naruto burning himself out but finally being able to properly draw on the Kyuubi's energy without the bloodlust ruling him. And because personally, even with my changes, Neji had the advantage unless Naruto actually attempted to kill him. As to just what the deal is with Sora, well, you're just gonna have to wait and see. I will say that what he transformed into was corrupting the Ten no Juin for its own purposes.

Now, I know it's been a while. Ok, so more than a while, since I updated this or any of my older fics, but there is a reason for that. When I began writing my stories I had just withdrawn from university due to personal reasons. I had a lot of time on my hands and needed something to keep me focused. But as time went on we began to work out that I was suffering from low-grade constant depression and some other issues. I have spent most of the past year and a half working on fixing or at least getting a hang of said issues, and am preparing to return to my university in two weeks to continue my degree. In that time I've had really odd sleep schedules due to work, which have prevented me from being able to write during my 'Muse Hours', approximately midnight to six am, when I do my best writing. Add to that my desktop has been on ice for about a year, and I haven't had regular or reliable computer access, nor the ability to use a computer when I'm in the proper frame of mind, so writing has been tough for me. My muse hits at odd moments, but rarely does that coincide with having time or the ability to write it down. Recently however I have begun to really refocus on my writing, especially on some of my older stories, and begun to produce material again. I can't guarantee any speed to my updates, as school is going to be a full time job for me, but I can promise that none of my stories (save my first Harry Potter fic) are dead, and that Konoha's Golden Viper, Bones of the Devil, Phoenix Rising, Legacy of the Planet, Desert Fox Redux, Kung Fu Kitsune, and a new Harry Potter project I am titling Vortex are at the top of my list. Originally this chapter was going to include the entirety of the finals, but I reached ten thousand words and then got stuck. I have held off on posting this for over a year because it a) was not perfect yet, and b) I was afraid if I posted it when I knew I didn't have inspiration to continue the rest of the chapter I would completely lose the inspiration. So here, after about a dozen rewrites, is finally chapter 25 of Phoenix Rising.

Jaa ne.

-ZI

**Technique Translations**

**Jigoku no Nigirikobushi**—_Gripping Fist of Hell/_ This Taijutsu move is little more than a chakra enhanced crushing technique. In and of itself it is nothing special, merely one of the damage inducing grapple techniques of Sora's Ten no Juin transformation. The basics behind it are likely learnable and applied to a lesser degree by others. (C-Class Taijutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)

**Raiton: Dengeki Ami**—_Lightning Release: Shocking Net/_ This technique is an evolution of the Dengeki Enko. The users focus all the energy of the Enko into the kunai each of them is holding. This energy then begins to arc between the kunai, seeking a target. To be caught in the field formed by the kunai is to be that target until the energy dissipates itself. (B-Class Ninjutsu) (Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto)

**Shinden wo Sentou**-_Sacred Ground of Combat/_ This technique sanctifies a battlefield for combat. Sora uses chakra infused within his sword to lift geometrical rocks into the air, creating an intricate lattice of points off of which to push. It turns the entire area into the perfect battlefield for high speed taijutsu users. (A-Class Ninjutsu) (Kabatsu Sora)


End file.
